Cahill's In The Future: Secrets of a Cahill
by Madrigal-in-training
Summary: Cahill's are amazing but lately things don't add up for Alec and Evelyn. What are their parents hiding from them about the Vespers? Who is the stranger, Nick, and what part did he play in their mothers past? Is being a Cahill really worth the pain? Part 2
1. Chapter 1

Cahill's In The Future: Secrets of a Cahill

Chapter 1: An Average Day

Alec Cahill POV

"Go!" The shout rang throughout Alec's head as he jumped off the ceiling alcove and into the path of the obstacles below. He snapped his arms to his side to accelerate his movement downward and narrowly avoided the red beam of light from a telltale laser headed toward him. He narrowed his jade green eyes before twisting like a ribbon in midair to dodge the bullets shot at him and made a flip to point his body eastward. With a quick release of his arms like a parachute, his before streamlined body began to slow down when Alec raised his legs and managed to get a grip with his knees on the wooden beam.

Still upside down, Alec raised his arm up to grab a more secure holding on the ledge before releasing his knees and dropping on the ground. As he got up from bended knees, he turned and shot a natural winning smile at his Survival Instincts teacher.

"How was that?" Alec asked cheerfully as he walked up from the obstacle course. His tutor was looking at him with unconcealed satisfaction and pride. His Survival Instincts teacher, Alec thought with a sardonic smile, most rich kids get music or etiquette teachers, he and his twin ended up with everything from Foreign Languages to Poison Making to the ever favorite class Subterfuge, Espionage and Intelligence 101.

"Very good Alexander," Mr. Terrion said approvingly, using his full name despite Alec's wince, "Excellent job in fact." The teen couldn't help but let a pleased smile escape his lips at Mr. Terrion's compliment. The man was a retired defense instructor of the Australian Secret Intelligence Agency (more commonly known as ASIS) and his approval was very rare.

"I don't understand," his sister, Evelyn said, "Al didn't grab the ribbon! How did he succeed if the whole objective wasn't completed?" Alec raised his hand and waved a piece of emerald green silk in his sister's surprised face. He tried not to smile when she snatched it from his hand and identified it to see if it was real. After determining that the shard of clothe was in fact the same piece they were ordered to receive, Evelyn looked up in disbelief with her striking amber eyes pinned to her amused brother.

"How," Evelyn demanded to her twin, "When did you manage to get this and not have me see you?" She looked positively furious but then again she would. The pretty redhead may have inherited her mother's classical beauty but her infamous temper matched her fathers perfectly, effectively sticking to the popular opinion that redheads would have major anger issues. Ev was like their Lucian dad in another way too. She couldn't stand it when someone tricked or surprised her.

She disliked it so much in fact that Alec and their parents had opted for the decision to stop throwing her surprise birthday parties when she was five- right after the birthday girl managed to kick the clown out of the window in one of her notorious temper tantrums. Suffice to say, the clown had avoided redheads ever since.

"I got it before I fell into the snake pit," Alec explained, "Right after I had to break the code for the Mandarin 54 bit encryption." Evelyn nodded in understanding, not overly upset anymore but not happy either.

"Now that you're finished Alexander," Mr. Terrion interrupted, "I think it's Evelyn's turn, yes?" His Australian accent was warm and friendly but Alec was quite aware of the small fact that his tutor was not one of the most feared men in the intelligence agency for nothing. He had tortured, even killed before. This was not a man to offend if you truly valued your life.

"Why not?" Alec replied, his voice nonchalant as he stepped back and gestured for his twin to go. She raised a single eyebrow at the unspoken challenge he issued before smirking and heading toward the course. Alec stepped back and flicked his jet-black locks away from his eyes as he assessed his sister's chance of succeeding. Evelyn had successfully finished climbing up the wooden beams and barley passing the hidden poisoned arrow trap when Alec got the sense that someone was behind him.

"May I speak to you for a second, Jason?" his mother's soft voice asked. Alec turned to see Mr. Terrion nod and walk up to her. His mothers reddish gold hair was in a slightly messy bun and despite the calm exterior that she casually portrayed, Al got the weirdest vibe that she was worried. He turned back to Evelyn to not be accused of spying on them but strained his ears to get even the smallest clue to his mother's agitation.

Their voices lowered to the barest of murmurs though so Alec couldn't hear a snatch of conversation, no matter how hard he tried. Even without looking Al could easily imagine his mom biting her lip in frustration, a quirk that quickly informed her family that she was unhappy with something. The fact that she went to his Survival Instincts teacher wasn't very surprising. Mr. Terrion had been one of her past instructors and she had trusted him. But what were they talking about? He was so deep in thought that he was unaware of his mother walking up to him.

"Hey Al," Amy said affectionately, as he reached out to ruffle her son's dark hair, "How was the obstacle course? Jason told me you did well." Alec looked back to smile at the slender form of his mother behind him.

"I liked the course. It was enjoyable," Alec answered before hesitating and asking, "Mum… are you okay?" Amy seemed surprised by her son's obvious concerned and smiled to reassure him.

"Of course, I'm fine Al," Amy answered, grinning at him, then she looked around before leaning toward him and saying in a conspirator tone, "Want to leave class? Jason and Evelyn seem pretty busy here; they won't see us sneak out." Alec laughed briefly before he followed his mother out of the room. Like she had said Jason- er… Mr. Terrion and Evelyn did seem too busy to notice them.

"How much work did you get today?" Amy asked casually as they headed toward the manors library. Out of the many things, Alec and his mother had in common, reading books were one of the most prominent.

"Not much," Alec answered quietly as he looked over some of the priceless first editions of Cahill manuscripts in their enormous library, "Just a ten page essay on Ekat assassinations in the 1900's for Cahill History class, a dozen antidotes I have to brew for poison making, a fifteen minute video cam of me pretending to be a foreign ambassador who may or may not be selling illegal high grade level five plutonium in Swahili for Diplomatic Etiquette and learning the top thirteen ways to kill someone using a piece of uncooked spaghetti for the Self- Defense course. They actually went easy on us today."

Alec watched as his mum smiled and sat down in one of the cushy emerald green seats in the room. On her right side was a small desk made of dark cherry wood to match the décor in the rest of the room. The panels, alcoves and bookcases were all made of the same dark wood that was a stark contrast to the bright shade of emerald found in the curtains, chairs, and carpet. The room was gigantic with almost a million books, a couple thousand of which were priceless first additions, and Alec's favorite room in the manor.

"When I was your age I worried more about my unfinished English homework than poison making," Amy informed him, laughing, "I guess my little boy's not so little anymore." Alec rolled his eyes although he couldn't help but let a pleased little smile escape his lips at the veiled compliment.

"Come on, Mum," Alec argued good-naturedly, "I'm thirteen! You can't call me little anymore." Amy smiled ruefully at her son's obvious truth.

"I can't anymore, can I?" Amy asked sadly before brightening, "You're just as tall as I am now. Next thing I know, you'll be going to college and falling in love with a pretty girl, and then getting married…" Alec blanched and paled considerably at his mothers teasing words.

"Mum," Al protested, horrified at the prospect, "I'm only thirteen. I'm not going to get married!" Amy laughed at her son's obvious distress.

"I should hope not," Amy said, mock serious, "I don't think I can handle being a grandmother right now." The look on Alec's ghost white face made Amy burst into laughter again. He looked like someone had just destroyed his beloved quantum solar powered laser and forbidden him from visiting the library ever again at the same time.

"You don't have to look so worried Alec," Amy said, still grinning, "I'm just joking." Her son looked oddly solemn as he looked at her.

"Mum," Alec said, his voice deadly serious, "With you, a person can never be sure if you're teasing or pondering how to best kill someone. Besides it's not you I'm worried about. It's Evelyn and her insane fashion sense if she hears the word 'wedding.'" Amy nodded, in complete agreement with her son. They were both well aware of Evelyn's small (that being the minimalist term possible) shopaholic issue. That and her trouble-free reaction to another person's pain made it easy to see just why she was Aunt Natalie's favorite (and only) niece.

After all, as one brilliant man used to say: A murdering, psychotic acorn always falls close to the murdering, psychotic tree. Or something likes that anyway.

"But that is isn't why I called you here," Amy continued on cheerfully, "I have to go somewhere for a while and I want to know that you'll keep an eye on your sister."

"Go somewhere?" Alec interjected, looking surprised and then worried, "Not, on you know, Madrigal business, is it mum? Is something wrong?"

"Of course not! Honestly, Alec you shouldn't jump to the worst conclusion every time," Amy chided, although the smile softened the blow, "I just need to check on this… feeling I have. And your father doesn't know about this and I don't want him worried so this will be between us only, all right?"

"Sure mum," Alec agreed easily, "Do you have any idea how long you'll be gone?"

"Oh not too long," Amy said, smiling slightly, "Just a week or so. You'll be all right while I'm gone, won't you?"

"We'll be fine," Alec assured, speaking for Evelyn as well, "We'll have lessons to keep us busy and the staff will handle all problems so nothing will go wrong. I hope you have a pleasant time doing … whatever your doing."

"Thank you," Amy said, beaming, "I hope so too. And Alec… do watch out for your sister and make sure she doesn't do anything too odd, agreed?"

"No problem," Alec said, "Evelyn and I will be fine. Have you already packed and notified the jet yet? When will you be leaving?"

"Janet already packed for me," Amy answered clearly, referring to their maid, "And I already informed the jet. Although why Ian insists I take a jet anywhere is ridiculous. He can't be convinced that commercial flights are just as good. Not to mention more eco-friendly."

"Um… mum," Alec said, wrinkling his nose in a surprisingly Kabra like movement, "I'm not trying to insult the Green faction here but that's because commercial flights are not, and never will be, as good as a private jet. The extra fossil fuels used are worth it."

"I'm starting to question my agreement of letting you and your sister live so freely," Amy commented, "I wanted you to live a modest life in a house in Boston. But your father would never allow his children to do anything so, in his words, _second-class._"

"I can't blame him," Alec said, shuddering a bit, "Hurrah to the common people and all but I _do not _handle public transportation that well. I'll stick to the private jets and chauffeured limos, thank you."

"You and everyone else in the human race," Amy commented dryly, "I have to leave in an hour though so I'll see you and Evelyn after Jason's class, fair enough?"

"If you say so," Alec agreed cheerfully as his mother walked out of the library. After she left, he leaned back against the leather armchair and snagged one of his favorite books from the wooden desk. After all, Alec reasoned with a small smile as he buried himself in _A Midsummer's Night Dream_, mum never said that he had to go _back_ to Mr. Terrion's class.

Evelyn Cahill POV

"Oh don't worry mum," I quipped, as I walked up the driveway with my brother trailing behind, his head buried in some book or another, and "We're old enough to take care of ourselves. We'll be fine. The week that will pass by will be completely boring and uneventful."

"That's what I'm worried about," Amy replied, a small smile quirking at her lips although it didn't quite hide the concern in her eyes as the Cahill limo pulled up and she leaned in to hug her daughter, "Whenever anything becomes boring, I usually come home to find the maids in tears and the manor in ruins."

At the corner of my eye, I saw Alec use his hand to stifle some nearly escaping chuckles and I turned to glare at him. The poisonous, patented (seriously my ancestors made sure that it became illegal to use the patented glare in eighteen different countries including Puerto Rico) Kabra glare was completely wasted though as Alec effectively ignored me just like he always did.

While I stood there, my arms crossed over my signed vintage Jonah Wizard T-shirt (For some reason Uncle Jonah is still as popular as ever and products with his face on it from when his early career began were almost impossible to find much less have signed unless you just happen to be his niece) and a small scowl on my face, fuming, as Alec leaned in to give mum one more hug good bye.

"Have a good trip mum," he said cheerfully, "Be careful, will you?"

"That's supposed to be my line," Amy Cahill replied, amused at her oldest child's parental actions, "I'll be fine as Evelyn seems to say. Don't blow up the house and make sure to eat your vegetables, okay?"

"Yes mum," Alec answered patiently as his mum got even more flustered when she went into the car, "Alec makes sure to keep an eye on your sister. And Evelyn don't tease your brother."

"Yes mum," Evelyn added, sharing a bemused glance with her brother as her mum got more and more frantic. Honestly, you'd think they were three instead of thirteen the way their parents treated them sometimes.

"Do all of your homework," Amy shouted out the window as the limo began to peel out of the driveway, "And don't hack into the Empire State Building's security network again!"

Her final words were all they heard before the limo was out of the driveway and speeding toward the private airport, leaving a few stirred leaves in its wake.

"She didn't have to tell us not to hack in the security network," Evelyn commented, feeling insulted, "We wouldn't do the same trick _twice."_

Alec nodded in understanding to the incident he and his sister had done last year. They had spent Ian Kabra's last birthday in New York City for the weekend to see Broadway musicals and tour Central Park. In honor of their father's birthday, Alec and Evelyn had broke through national security firewalls and programmed the computer to light up the Empire State building in Lucian colors of red and silver, therefore creating a mass international panic among the citizens of the United States as their beloved landmark was changed.

Suffice to say, Ian Kabra, while appreciating the gesture form his children, had not been amused and had to pull several strings as Head of Lucian Branch to fix the mass hysteria in the States. To this day, Alec was still forbidden from hacking into any major satellites or public landmarks and Evelyn was refused permission to hack into anything period. Uncle Fiske claimed that while Alec may have been the better techno wizard, _he_ had some self-restraint and wouldn't manipulate broadcasts waves to put an end to the terror that is Sesame Street, something that Evelyn really couldn't stop herself from doing.

Still she wouldn't have done the same trick_, twice._

"What should we do now?" I asked a minute later, my good mood suddenly returning in full blast, "I heard that normal children have huge, blow-out parties where everything gets broken and kids drink a lot of alcohol when their parents leave. Can we have a party like that?"

"Sure," Alec replied absently, still not lifting his head from the book as I scowled at him, "Do whatever you want."

"Oh, whatever?" I asked lightly, feeling a buzz of irritation as my brother continued to ignore me, "So you'll be okay if I invite total strangers into the manor and allow them to completely trash our home? Not to mention drinking alcohol even though I'm underage?"

"Why not?" Alec replied, just as carelessly, "Don't let me stop you from your fun."

"You'll let me pierce my belly button?" I pressed again, trying to rile him enough to get his head out of the novel, "If I got a tattoo all over my body?"

"It's your body," Alec answered, easily sidestepping a lilac bush as he headed toward the garden, his feet quickly stepping through the familiar grass, following invisible tracks from years of experience.

"Oh come on," I finally said, throwing my hands up in the air, "There must be_ something_ you want me to do. Something that you want now."

"If you would stop talking," Alec replied, mildly, "Then yes, I would appreciate it." I groaned in response and didn't bother to hide it. My brother could be so annoying sometimes.

"Oh come on, Alec!" I said, reaching out to twist my brother around to face me, ignoring his exclamation of surprise as the book slipped through his fingers, "We have to do something!"

"Reading would be nice," he said, calmly, bending down to grab his book for the lush green grass, "You being quiet would be even nicer."

"We could fill the house with melted asparagus," I suggested, ignoring his little offense, "Or hypnotize the leader of a world power in the White House. I've always wanted to see the President dance the hula on national television!"

Alec continued to ignore me, his dark head buried halfway into one of Shakespeare's classics as I continued to rattle off ideas from the top of my head.

"We could dump ten tons of cherry Kool-aid into the Atlantic Sea," I added, "Or send a fake love letter from the Prime Minister to the head of the Tomas family. Then there's turning the Taj Mahal into a giant disco dance club! We could invite Prince William and everything! Maybe we should fly to Hollywood and cover a pop star with permanent glue and add in chicken feathers on top. I bet Kieran would help us!"

I continued to add in idea after idea but Alec refused to pick his head up even though I knew that he knew that I knew he was listening. My brothers can complete multi tasks easily. Even when deeply immersed in a book, I could tell he was listening to me. Alec just refused to acknowledge any of my ideas.

Finally fed up with it I added, "Or I can go get a big, sharp knife and kill myself in it. I'm sure the dark, red gushing blood would look amazing with my scarlet top!"

When he refused to comment for even that I demanded, "Alec, are you even listening to me?"

Still my brother continued to read, happily oblivious to my annoyance. Wanting to shake his normally stoic attitude up a bit, I continued with a line that I knew would get me his full, undivided attention. 

"Or…" I began slowly, letting a wicked smile come to my face as I paused on the step, "We could go explore the Catalyst."

_I have to apologize that it took so long for me to type and post this up. I just had a lot of pressure with the first marking period coming up and now I got a ton of homework over break. I'll try to post up another chapter as quickly as I can but I'm afraid I can give no other reassurance than the fact that I promise that I'll try to post it up in less than ten days. _


	2. Chapter 2

Cahill's In The Future: Secrets of a Cahill

Chapter 1: The Catalyst

Evelyn Cahill POV

My brother was not some one you could easily surprise. This was mainly because he always had five or six different possible scenarios complete with their probability, cause, effect, and possible reactions running through his head at all times. Therefore, on one of the rare occasions that I did manage to surprise him, I felt a well-deserved pride.

This was no exception. The minute Alec raised his head from his novel, jade green eyes widening in surprise, I allowed a small, triumph smile to show for a minute. After all, it's not everyday that Alexander Cahill allows himself to be shocked.

"Are you mad Evelyn?" Alec demanded, halting in his path altogether, "You know full well, we're forbidden from going in there."

"Maybe," I answered, feeling reckless, "But when has that ever stopped you before?" He paused for a minute, knowing that my claim was true. Alec had never cared for rules before unless they pressed to his advantage. If he wanted to do something then he would do it, despite what anyone else may have said.

"This isn't a game Ev," he warned, although even I could see the temptation he felt at the idea, "This isn't just some little bit of mischief we could do and get away with. Mum and Dad said in no uncertain terms, that we are _not _allowed in there. If we disobey that order, it'll make what we did to the Empire State building seem like a harmless prank."

Despite myself I couldn't help but feel a small shiver of fear. My annoyingly perfect, levelheaded brother was right as usual. But despite the irritation of having to admit that his logic was flawlessly sound, there was my parent's fury to consider.

Mum and Dad would be furious. There were things in the Catalyst that only the highest-ranking Madrigal agents were allowed to see. The information in there was priceless and top-secret, not to mention guarded by some of the best security measures possible. And if this was the Madrigals we were talking about than the security would be ten times better than Fort Knox could ever dream of.

Getting in there would be bad enough but getting out would be nigh impossible. If you didn't have the highest amount of clearance possible than you would be killed by all the traps, no doubt about it. Mum and Dad both forbid us from ever getting within two miles of the Catalyst, but that just made the offer all the more tempting.

"So you're going to just stand there and spout all that rubbish about rules?" I demanded, unsure of as to why I wanted to challenge my brother that badly, "I never took you for a _coward_, Alec."

I felt guilt gnaw at my stomach the minute I said it although I knew I couldn't take it back. The urge to apologize just got stronger though as Alec's face darkened and his emotions froze behind his mask. Calling my twin a coward was possibly the worst mistake I could have made. Alec wasn't a coward. Anyone with half a brain cell could see that. And calling him one was the worst possible insult, and coming from me that made it even more terrible.

"Well if I'm such a coward," Alec bit out, making me cringe as his glare turned toward me for possibly the first time in my entire life, "Then I'm sure you can handle breaking into the Catalyst without me slowing you down!"

With that he turned and stalked away, making me shrivel inside. I wanted to call out, tell him I was sorry, but my pride wouldn't let me admit that even if I was at fault and his pride wouldn't let him forgive me even though he usually did with my past mistakes. And he was wrong. I _did_ need him. Pride issue aside, I probably needed my brother more than I would ever admit, more than he needed me anyway.

With all thoughts of breaking in the forbidden chamber flying out of my head, I turned heel and fled to my room, all the while cursing my damning pride and the temptation of the Catalyst that made me hurt my brother like that. Whether I liked it or not, I had really screwed myself up this time.

Alec Cahill POV 

"I suppose I should feel guilty for this but it really was for her own good," Alec muttered to himself, hiding a small smile as he continued to stalk down the path, his book hanging loosely at his side my long, pianist fingers.

The look on Evelyn's face did make him feel guilty for a moment, but she should learn that sneaking into top-secret chambers belonging to high profile Madrigals would not be best for her health and this was the least painful way he could show her. What surprised him most was how easily Evelyn seemed to accept that he was angry with her. Silly girl should have known that I wouldn't have been that livid with her.

Maybe he had been too harsh though. His poor twin looked close to tears if possible when he had finally made a big show of storming off. But this would be best for her. A bit of the silent treatment would help destroy her fixation for breaking into a top-secret chamber like the Catalyst. It was just too tempting of an offer. And far too dangerous, Alec knew that. Yet even with that indisputable knowledge, he had felt excited at the idea of breaking into a highly dangerous faculty. He would have to thank Kieran for helping with his acting abilities later.

If it were difficult for Alec to dismiss the offer than it would be nearly impossible to convince his stubborn sister otherwise. This though would be enough to distract her until Alec thought of an equally enticing piece of mischief for her to do. Evelyn was impulsive but she still retained the intelligence that being a Lucian required. She knew that her chances of surviving the Catalyst's defense systems would be one out of ten if Alec didn't help her. And Evelyn's Lucian self-preservation instinct was too high for her to ignore that.

So all in all this was best for both of them. That was what Alec was trying to convince himself of though as he wordlessly continued to follow the invisible trail. Completely unsurprisingly, his feet brought him to a stop as they reached a tall sycamore tree at the edge of the manor grounds, near the high stonewall that separated him from the rest of the world outside.

Somehow, whenever he was angry or guilty or whatever, he would subconsciously arrive here without knowing it. This was his happy little haven and he spent so much time here that Evelyn had jokingly christened it the "Alec Tree" when they were both six. The twisting, gnarled tree was different from all the others in the extensive manor grounds on the fact that it was not in pristine condition and never cared for by the gardeners.

Rather than having long strips of effect bark, the wood on this tree was old and weathered so long that it was not a pale bleach color. Untrimmed branches reached up into the heavens, twisting like thousands of miniature, intertwined arms. Leaves, a beautiful shade of evergreen rather than the lush emerald found everywhere else in the garden, turned a warm reddish gold in the fall where they flew down from the tree in colorful spirals. It was old and strong, attribute to the many seasons that had come and gone within its knotted branches.

With practiced ease, Alec climbed up the ancient tree, his hands reaching up to the invisible arm holds and footholds etched into the tree over time. His body moved manually, long slender fingers reaching out to brush the next arm hold without his mind telling him what to do. Within minutes Alec was happily situated inside the crook of the knotted branches, his book lying forgotten on his lap as he gazed over the beautiful manor grounds.

It was at that moment that he became aware of an interesting fact. He wouldn't have been able to see it at all really if it wasn't for the slight breeze that blew then, alerting him to a tiny flash of silver against the lush green of the leaves. He stilled, quietly gazing at the dark outline of the stranger crouching at the base of a tree a few meters away from him.

The flash of silver he had seen just moments ago seemed to be the silvery blonde of the man's hair. He was tall, that was evident even with the crouching, and wearing simple black clothes that looked to be impeccably tailored. Alec couldn't get much of a glimpse at the man's face, but he had a good build, not overly muscular but strong enough to be formidable in a fight. He was casually hiding behind the tree, as though he sneaked into private properties every day and looked to be his parent's age.

For a minute Alec was puzzled as to whom this strange man could be. He was obviously hiding, so he must not be invited, and besides Alec would have known if they were having guests over. He had that simple… presence of danger around him and the fact that he was here of all places indicated that he wasn't a normal person. So this new man must be a Cahill.

His branch however was difficult to find. He could have been a Lucian, but why would he sneak into manor grounds if he were? Father was head of the Lucians and so Alec recognized most Lucian agents by sight if not name as acquaintances of his father. But this man was completely unknown as of today. Besides Alec would have bet all the money he owned in his many bank accounts, which was a considerable amount, that this man was not a Lucian.

An Ekat possibly. He certainly possessed intelligence to bypass all those security measures that Mum had installed into manor grounds. The fact that he did it without alerting anyone was even more impressive. But even if he were intelligent, most Ekats would have been freaked out by the difficult security measures and not have the will, or the strength for that matter, to sneak in.

Likewise he couldn't be a Tomas for reasons such as intelligence. Besides, if you ignore the whole trespassing in private property thing, the man looked seemed almost _pleasant_ and Alec was an excellent judge of character. Yet while some Tomas did show signs of intelligence like Aunt Reagan and her impressive tech abilities or be sort of nice, like Uncle Hamilton and his cheerful attitude, none of them could be _this_ kind and _this_ clever. Especially not if they show both traits at the same time.

The idea of him being a Janus though was just laughable. No offense to Kieran but the Janus had no concept of stealth whatsoever. They were used to being the center of attention, the highlight of the party, the star of the show. Even the Tomas, completely inelegant and clumsy though they may be, had better chances of being covert. For heavens sake, Eisenhower Holt was sneakier than them and that was saying something.

Just as Alec decided to slip through the tree quickly and go alert his parents of the stranger in the tree, the stranger looked up giving Alec a glimpse of amused midnight blue eyes with surprising flecks of silver sparkling in them.

"You don't need to hide," the man said, cheerfully, "I can see you."

Nick's POV

I don't think I've ever seen a Cahill look that surprised before. The boy actually fell off the tree in his haste to get over the shock and I had to bite my lip to keep from laughing. Getting up, I walked over to where he laid, spread eagle wide over the damp ground, his jade green eyes still startled. He really shouldn't have assumed that I had no idea he was there. After all, if Amy Cahill found herself hard pressed to get by me than it shouldn't be a wonder that her son wouldn't be able to do so.

"Are you all right?" I asked, crouching down next to him as the slender teen sat up, a small bruise forming in his otherwise flawless face. As he rubbed the rapidly darkening bruise with his hand, I leaned back against the tree to look at him.

He was Amy's son all right. The pale skin, jade green eyes, and dark look he was shooting me could mark him as no other. Yet he had signs of Ian in him too in his tall frame, sharp features, high cheekbones, and narrowed eyes. He seemed strong and fit, and prepared for a lot of things. I would bet anything right then that he had several different possible outcomes of this meeting running through his head right now. He was just too like Amy not to have that.

But he lacked the sadness that always hung over his mother, and even the initial wariness and distrust that accompanied his father. He was innocent actually. He knew the horrors of life but had yet gone through them himself. The life he had was difficult yes, living up to parents like that was undoubtedly taxing, but all he had known was love and privilege.

They say what doesn't kill you makes you stronger. He was strong but not strong enough to face the horrors that being a Cahill would entail. Who knows, despite his parentage the boy might even have a happy, carefree life.

"I'm fine," the boy answered, grudgingly, as I came out of my thoughts, "I suppose etiquette dictates that I introduce myself. I'm Alexander Cahill, although I prefer to be called Alec."

"It's nice to meet you Alec," I replied, purposefully leaving my name out as I reached out a hand to help the young teen up. The boy was polite then, but that was to be expected. With Amy and Ian as parents, he must have grown up with words like "please" and "thank you".

"That's nice to now," Alec retorted, scrambling up without taking the offered hand, "Because I assure you that the pleasure is all yours." Okay, so maybe he's not that polite.

"Is this the part where you offer me a cup of tea then?" I asked amused, as the boy stood up to glower at me, "I've heard English hospitality excelled all expectations."

"You should know," Alec answered, not moving anywhere as he pinned his eyes on me, "After all you are English yourself. Care to explain what you're doing in my home?"

I had to hide my start of surprise as the boy identified my origins. Usually I managed to disguise my accent so perfectly that no body could guess where I was from just from pure instinct. Even now, my voice sounded like a Northern American. This boy had to be quite skilled to get the soft lilt of an English accent from deep within my voice.

"Actually I would rather not," I replied, smiling at the suspicious glint in his eyes. Well he didn't seem to trust me that well.

"You misunderstood me," Alec said quietly, "That was not an offer. It was a requirement."


	3. Chapter 3

Cahill's In The Future: Secrets of a Cahill

Chapter 3: Research

Alec Cahill POV

Every damn file was coded. I'd searched up Nicholas Verlac on the Madrigal database and dozens of different files immediately popped up. The only problem was that every single one of them refused to give me access! I don't know what I was doing wrong. As Amy Cahill's son, I've some of the best clearance possible and yet even the Madrigal archives consider this to be on a need- to -know basis that completely rejected my passwords.

I had tried hacking into the computer and ghosting through the files but the firewalls used to protect them was too powerful for even my extensive abilities. After an hour of relentless searching and glaring at the computer screen, I still got nothing. No scratch that, my only reward was a glaring headache.

Leaning against my chair, I tried to contemplate, for possibly the eighty-sixth time what the name meant to me. It rang no bells whatsoever and all this research has shown me was that whoever Nicholas Verlac is, he had a very, _very_ delicate past concerning the Madrigals. And I was determined to find out what that past was.

Only adding to his mystery was the remembrance of our… meeting? Just seconds after he introduced himself, the man turned and disappeared. He just slipped through the trees like mist and by the time I ran after him, he was gone, and my questions were dying on my lips.

The memory definitely wasn't cheering on my tracking ability, that's for sure. If I wanted to know more about this… Nick, then I would have to hack into the files. Then I could see how it goes on from there. Accessing these files however was easier said than done and as shown here, I don't have the talent to hack through these firewalls. Luckily for me though spring break's almost over and Ev and I'll have to go back to school. And I think I know the perfect person there to help us.

Speaking if Ev, I thought as I shut down the computer, better go find her and apologize. The silent treatment has gone on long enough. Standing up, I made my way over to Evelyn's room which really should be described as a suite.

The walls were made of black marble with jade inlay, all except for one which held a giant glass tank. A dozen rare Caribbean fish swam around the lighted azure water happily and the floor had a plush jade green carpet over it. A four poster bed made of black mahogany and filled with jade silk comforters and aqua green velvet pillows stood at the center of the room. Looking completely out of place was a dozen or so long, sharpened knives lining the walls.

Evelyn was leaning against one of the pillows and had a blue-green coverlet over her. A thin book, her favorite_, The Dummies Guide to Basic Poison, _lay open on her lap but she looked up hopefully when I walked in. I felt guilt gnaw at the pit of my stomach, although I stared at the Chinese dragon pattern on the floor rather than at her red rimmed eyes as I began to talk.

"Sorry," I offered quickly, "I over reacted Ev and-" I didn't get much of a chance to finish as Evelyn just tackled me with a hug, making me nearly fall over as I tried to balance her weight. Her reddish gold hair tickled my nose and I struggled to keep in a sneeze.

"Strangle- me- Ev- stop," I choked out, getting in deep gulps of air when Evelyn finally lessened her hold slightly and looked sheepish as she stepped away.

"Oops," Evelyn said, shrugging, "Sorry about that. And it's not your fault. I shouldn't have said that you were scared. I knew you'd never be."

"That's not true," I protested, "Besides I have something important to tell you. I saw this stranger at the grounds and…"

"Oh, that's so romantic!" Evelyn exclaimed, bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet after I told her what happened, "He was worried about her! Don't you think it's sweet that he wanted to check up on mum? He must love her!"

"Why do you think he loves mum?" I asked, feeling bemused. Evelyn gave me a look that clearly said she thought I was an idiot. Or a boy. The words are usually synonyms to her mind. Whenever I point out that_ I'm_ a boy, she just rolls her eyes and tells me it doesn't count because I'm her brother. Mum claims that it's just a phase she's going through and she'll stop thinking that every boy is out to get her in a few weeks.

"Well he's obviously not in love with dad," Evelyn pointed out, giving me the "duh!" look, "And he's never met us before so why would he care if we were okay or not? It must be mum he likes."

"Why would he love mum?" I asked, feeling slightly disturbed by that idea. Evelyn shrugged.

"She's beautiful, she's kind, she's successful, and she's clever…" Evelyn pointed out, listing them on her fingers, "Half the men who meet her fall in love with her instantly. It's not exactly much of a surprise Alec. Besides it's not like we have to worry. We already know that mum loves dad."

"I don't know," I said, irresolute, "He doesn't act like its some random crush. He acts like they have a history together. Like it's intimate. He says that he knew her."

"Don't over react Al," Evelyn replied, "What we need to do is hack through those firewalls. We can ask Aiden to do it tomorrow."

"Just what I was thinking," I agreed, remembering my computer genius Madrigal friend. For the rest of the evening I listened to Evelyn chatter in about going back to school. But part of my mind was also obsessing over what my sister had said. My mum was amazing and a lot of men had liked her, but I never worried because she and dad always seemed so perfect for each other. Now with this new stranger around and the intimate history he seemed to hint at with my mum… a lot seems unsure. I just wish I could put it out of my mind like Evelyn seems to.

Aiden POV

"Help me," Alec mouthed from across the hall.

"No way," I mouthed back, trying not to laugh at the desperate look on the usually aloof teen's face. He was completely cornered I noted with a smile. I swear watching Alec try to wriggle out of these situations was the single reason that I dragged myself out of bed in the morning. The unofficial Alec Cahill fan club had arrived.

Chelsea Simmons was at the lead, batting her to- long- to- be- real eyelashes at a very annoyed Alec. Poor guy had been ambushed by his locker and was now being forced to deal with shameless flirting from half a dozen girls. While most guys wouldn't have found this panic worthy, Alec went through all means to avoid most of these girls. He even carried all of his books around all day to avoid coming to his locker where one or two were sure to be hovering around.

He was out of his luck not though. Spring break was over and he had just knowingly walked into a trap because he needed this semesters books. After all, he couldn't pass his Algebra seminar without the class texts. And while Mr. Rivera was all too sympathetic to Alec's plight- Madrigal or not, he found it hilarious- he wouldn't be pleased that his star pupil couldn't retrieve a book from several love struck girls. In all fairness, this would have gone better if that restraining order Alec had requested had arrived by now, I suppose.

I turned my attention back to Evelyn who was leaning against her locker, a small amused smile pulling at her face as she watched her distraught twin. She looked as amazing as ever in a white embroidered, calf length dress that showed off her cinnamon colored skin and exotic reddish gold hair.

"That's partly your fault you know," I muttered, walking up to her as I indicated Alec's predicament.

"Nice to see you too, Aiden," she replied in good humor, "And how is this, my fault? If Alec wasn't so handsome than the girls wouldn't flock to him like bees to honey."

"Maybe there would be less girls if you didn't insist on making him where designer clothes every day," I offered, seeing Alec field questions from several of the girls.

"Please," Evelyn retorted, "The girls would still be obsessed even if Alec wore rags."

"Good point," I said, laughing, "So shall I save him this time or is it your turn?" Evelyn cocked her head to the side, looking thoughtful before she replied.

"I've got it covered," she said carelessly, smiling as she walked up to the crowd and waved her hands in a shooing motion, "Sorry ladies, but I need to borrow Alec for a minute." Without giving them a chance to argue, she just reached out and snatched the sleeve of Alec's jacket, pulling him away from the disappointed girls as she did so.

"Enjoying yourself?" Evelyn asked innocently, leading her brother across the polished tiled hallway. Churchill Academy may have been a school but it looked to be a far cry from a learning facility. The old Victorian mansion was updated with state of the art technology benefiting the very old, wealthy families that sent their children there but it still retained an old class charm hard to replicate in the twentieth century. The fact that this exclusive school was ten times as clean as any normal public school and had a ballroom for all official school dances only furthered its differences form any average building.

"You know I wasn't," Alec retorted, 'Why didn't you save me earlier?" For the ever calm one in the group, he sounded seriously pissed-off.

"Well we wanted to give Chelsea a fighting chance, you know," Evelyn answered, grinning, "You have to admire the girl's single minded determination."

"Simmons of the warpath," I added gleefully, "She'll do anything to get you to ask her to prom. Poor girl's delirious apparently. Thinks she actually has a chance."

"Where did she get that idea?" Alec asked, horrified, "I'm not going to _go_ to prom. Not to mention its three months away."

"Like I said, she's delirious," I replied, shrugging, "What are you going to do? You can't avoid her forever. She has a copy of your schedule, you know. She signed up to be an assistant at the office to get a copy of it."

"Don't bother Aiden," Evelyn answered, yawning, "He's going to try anyway. Other than Alec's love problems though, we wanted to know if you could do us a favor."

Alec Cahill POV

And Evelyn says I'm oblivious. Yeah right. I leaned back against the locker, warily keeping an eye out for more Chelsea Simmons; as I listened to Evelyn explain what we had to know. Judging by the rapt expression on Aiden's face, the chestnut haired boy was paying careful attention although I would have bet any sum of money that whatever she said wouldn't stop him from helping us. Evelyn could have asked the guy to turn traitor and fly to the moon and the guy would accept.

I'm pretty sure that just knowing Evelyn would be there is enough reason for him to help us. With the way his sky blue eyes hung on to her every word, you'd think it'd be obvious that he liked her. And Evelyn defiantly liked him back. The only problem: they both had no idea _at all. _Denial? Not so much. You actually have to _know_ you're in love with someone to deny. Both of them were just oblivious to their feelings. But if I could see them than you'd think they would've figured it out by now.

Sometimes I think that psychology degree from Yale that Aiden scored a couple of years ago was completely inaccurate. The guy hailed as the future Dr. Phil couldn't even tell when he himself had a crush on a pretty girl.

"So after school then?" Evelyn asked brightly.

"Sure," Aiden agreed, slinging his Marc Jacobs bag on his back, "We'll take my limo. Dad's n tour right now but mum'll love to see you. At the front steps of the school at three, okay for you?"

"That shouldn't be a problem," I answered, turning around to head for my first class, "See you later." As I checked my schedule, I tried not to wince. Biology last period. Great, how am I supposed to be there on time with Chelsea Simmons no doubt blocking the door after dismissal?

The rest if the day passes by quickly and I was just finishing up my homework during Study Hall when the bell rang, signaling Bio. With a sigh, I slipped my book bag on and headed toward my next class, reciting the one hundred and twelve ways to kill a person by crushing their diaphragm in my head. The monotone chant helped keep my mind off ditching which looked more and more appealing the closer I got to class. When I was hovering on the edge of the door, my flight response getting more and more urgent, Chelsea ambushed me.

"Al!" she chirped, buzzing up to me, "What a coincident! Isn't it so lucky that we're in class together?" I bit my lip to keep myself from telling her that with the exception of my parents and Evelyn, no one else was allowed to call me Al. Instead I just forced a smile on to my face, which resembled more of a grimace, and answered.

"Yeah, it was really surprising," I said in a neutral tone, knowing full well that she manipulated her way into this class. I mean, really, Chelsea Simmons in AP Biology? Wonder how much she made her daddy fork over to get into this class.

"Maybe you can be my chemistry partner then," Chelsea said, looking for all the world as though the idea had just occurred to her, "I have no idea what to do in this class," here she leaned in and batted her eyelashes at me, "I bet_ your_ really good at this Chemistry stuff."

"This is biology," I reminded her, trying not to snicker. Seriously I should be getting a freaking Oscar here for being so nice. "Chemistry's in room 2B." With that, I just breezed though the door and headed to one of the held filled seats in the back. Chelsea just stood there as though she wasn't quite sure what happened. And okay, maybe this sounds completely picky but I think I refuse to date a girl who can't tell the difference between chemistry and biology.

"Can I sit here?" I asked, tapping Rebecca mason on the shoulder. She just looked up and moved her things from the extra stool so I could sit down next to her.

"Simmons's still following you around like a lost puppy?" she asked in amusement. Rebecca was a friend of Evelyn's so I've met her once or twice but didn't really know her that well. Vaguely I remembered that her dada was some big shot accountant in the banking industry. In a school like this, you usually pick up these facts first and the people second. A Lucian, she was relatively nice although I've never gotten on her bad side so I couldn't tell.

Now for example, as our teacher- a retired Madrigal agent named Mr. Rivera- began roll call, I saw Rebecca slip something out of her bag that was definitely not Citric Acid.

"Essence of belladonna?" I asked through the side of my mouth, "What do you need deathly nightshade for?" She looked over at me, startled by my question.

"For Julie Parker," she muttered hazel eyes locked on the spiky haired brunette at the front of the classroom, "She looked at me the wrong way."

"Of course she did," I answered, rolling my eyes, "So now you're brilliant idea of revenge is to poison her because of it? Isn't that a little extreme?"

"It's in concentrated form so it's weaker," Rebecca said defensively, "All she'll do is get a stomachache, puke a little…. Maybe get her intestines pumped a bit."

"A little!" I demanded, "You can't be serious? The girl could end up seriously ill in the hospital! She might even die!"

"She'll be fine!" Rebecca snapped, "Parker's got it coming to her. She shouldn't have called Ev and I rich snobs just because we're actually paying for this school while _she's_ getting in on charity."

"Wait, scholarship girl called Evelyn a snob?" I asked incredulously. At Rebecca's grim nod, I frowned and reconsidered my options. I could tell she wasn't lying so… "Use the belladonna in its pure form. Added scorpion venom is good too but don't get overboard. Make it look like some serious case of food poisoning. We don't want anything to be pinned on us." Rebecca smiled.

"Mr. Cahill, Ms. Mason," Mr. Rivera called out from the front of the classroom, "Would you like to share your joke with us?" The rest of the class turned, Chelsea foolishly glaring daggers at Rebecca.

"Not really sir," I quipped, "but thanks for asking!" Everyone else laughed and turned back to the lesson on the board. Picking up my pen, I absently jotted a few notes down before Rebecca poked me with her _really_ sharp pencil.

'Hey, do you know where Ian Kabra is?" she asked, her voice sounding awed as she talked about the Lucian branch co-leader. I tried not to roll my eyes. Aunt Natalie and Dad were co-branch leaders but from the way Rebecca was talking about them, you'd think they single handedly saved the entire Lucian branch from mass destruction.

"Dad's at Morocco, I think," I answered, "Or maybe Sweden. He was there the last time I checked. Branch business and all."

"Yeah," she agreed. And that was the last of our conversation before I ducked out of class and rushed to the limo. Now let me tell you something about Aiden's apartment complex. If my house could be described as classy and elegant than Aiden's London penthouse was downright high tech and twenty first century all the way. It was all silver table tops, chrome beams, and glass panels. To be honest it was a bit creepy. And this is coming from the guy who could recognize essence of belladonna on sight so… yeah, the apartment was basically a giant scene from _Revenge of the Interplanetary Robots: Part Two. _

"Mum, I'm home," Aiden called out as his doorman let us in, "And I brought Evelyn and Alec." A slender blonde woman with a slightly mischievous look to her sky blue eyes looked up from where she was reading on the white leather couch. I got a peek at the book as she bookmarked her page. _Domestic Relations in Southern Brazil circa 1800's to 1920. _

I'm not kidding. This is considered average reading material to my family. Now if you really want to freak out my family than I'd suggest _Clifford: the Big Red Dog _or even more extreme, _Barney._ That's a surefire way to give an Ekat a heart attack. Even the _Harry Potter_ series is considered living on the edge.

"Evelyn, Alec," she said, smiling, as she hugged my sister. The familiar scent of my godmothers sweet cherry blossom and spicy jasmine flower perfume covered me everywhere as it became my turn to be hugged.

"Hi Aunt Melissa," I said. Now strictly speaking, Melissa was not really my aunt and Aiden wasn't really my cousin but we called her that anyway. As mum's best friend and long time Madrigal partner, she was practically family anyway.

"Would you three like a snack?" Aunt Melissa asked, gesturing toward the kitchen, "Luke bought some really good French pastries that he sent from his last stop on tour. The chocolate butter filled éclair is especially good in fact."

"Actually mum, we've got some stuff to do," Aiden replied turning around, "We'll just be in my room. Thanks for the offer though."

"Alright sweetie," she answered as she headed to her room, "Don't hesitate to call me if you need me though."

"Sweetie?" Evelyn snickered as Aiden blushed deep red. I ignored their banter as I walked over to Aiden's room. Unsurprisingly the bed was made although all the computer screens looked polished to perfection. A short dagger lay on the bedside table, illuminated by the bright light cast from a sliver computerized wireless lamp. Blueprints of interior engineering designs lined the walls and a dart gun lay inconspicuously on top of the laundry basket. A perfect room for the son of a Lucian sectored Madrigal mum and an Ekat sectored madrigal dad. It was both ridiculously high tech and dangerously edgy.

"So you want me to search up Nicholas Verlac on the Madrigal archives?" Aiden asked as he walked over to his computer, "Why don't, I cross search Madrigal and Nicholas Verlac on all the other branches databases while I'm at it? You might get some important info."

"I didn't think of that," I admitted, "Do you think you could do it?" Evelyn walked up to stand beside me as I leaned in close to the softly glowing screen.

"Give me a minute," Aiden muttered and searched the Madrigal database. Just like it did with me, it rejected his passwords.

"Wow," Aiden whistled, "This is some serious protection. I might be able to sneak in but it'll take me a week at least. Maybe we should try the other branches instead."

"Okay then," Evelyn said, hesitantly, "But are you sure you can hack into all the other branches security? Because I can tell you, for one, the Lucian branch isn't taking any chances with its security."

"They won't be as intense as this one," Aiden replied, looking up from the screen, "If you give me the basic Lucian code, I'll have passed its biggest line of defense. The rest will be a cake. And the Lucian branch is definitely the most paranoid. The other branches are way more laid back."

'If you say so," I said, giving him the password. In twenty minutes, Aiden had successfully broken through the basic defense, obliterated the Lucian firewalls, evaded the incoming viruses, and demolished any pride the Lucian branch might have from creating a database safe from any assault by a thirteen year old. Finally, Aiden leaned back against his leather chair.

"We're in."

**Okay, first of all, I am so sorry it took so long to post. It's just that my computer decided to crash during Winter break and I was forced to use my cousin's to complete typing this. It's amazing how a little kid would be willing to lie to his parents for you if you offer them candy. (My mom thinks I'm doing homework now). So yes, I'm corrupting seven year olds. I'll feel bad about it later. Review! **


	4. Chapter 4

Cahill's In The Future: Secrets of a Cahill

Chapter 4: What the HELL? 

Evelyn Cahill POV

"Do the Lucian archives mention Nicholas?" Alec demanded the minute Aiden hacked in. A bit startled, I turned to face him only to find him so deep in thought that he barely noticed me. Color me surprised but was my brother really troubled by this stranger. From the milky white of the screen that was reflected in his jade orbs, I would say yes.

"Definitely," Aiden replied, clicking through several files, "This is some pretty heavy stuff. I think a dozen red coded files mention your mystery man. One's labeled 'Madrigal'. Want me to click it?"

"Yes," Alec replied, drawing up a chair, "Try to find as many information codes as possible."

"Got it," Aiden nodded and clicked.

**To: Isabel Kabra, Lucian Headquarters; London, England**

**From: Clyde Silverman, Lucian Base; Moscow, Russia**

**The assorted list of suspected Madrigal agents was confirmed on x/x/ Thurs. 14:26. Copies of the list have been sent to: Salem, USA; Moscow Kremlin, Russia; Passy, France; Bletchley Park, UK.**

**Following the attack on Easter Island, operatives Andreas Gergley and Chrissy Collins acted according to Madrigal rules post C16 and A84. Message AT194 has been sent. Code Red Confirmed. Repeat: Code Red Confirmed.**

**Current Madrigal activity centers mainly on Easter Island although levels continue to rise in disturbing heights around the world, particularly near the United Nations building, USA. On the Napoleon Bonaparte New Danger Scale based one to ten with ten being high level alert and one being sniveling Janus, these suspected agents have been determined. **

**Amy Cahill- Boston, Massachusetts; Level Nine**

**Daniel Cahill- Boston, Massachusetts; Level Seven**

**Fiske Cahill- Unconfirmed; Level Nine**

**Luke - Unconfirmed; Level Seven**

**Adrian- Unconfirmed; Level Seven **

**Jason Terrier- Melbourne, Australia; Level Nine**

**Nicholas Verlac- London, England; Level Ten**

Evelyn Cahill POV

Stunned, I reached out a hand to grab a chair and sat down. Just on time because my legs were just about to fail me. Alec didn't look the least but affected by what happened, although his green eyes sparked with what looked like anger. Aiden just leaned back in his chair. He was the first one to speak.

"Wow," Aiden said, summing it up for them in one massive understatement, "Whoever your mystery man is, two things are positive. One, he's a Madrigal. Two, he's a damn good Madrigal." 

"He must be," I muttered, my eyes glued to the screen, "Can you believe his score? A ten! A freaking ten and mum only got a nine! Nick must be really dangerous if he's considered a bigger threat than mum or Uncle Fiske. What do you think he did to get that type of score?"

"He's a Madrigal," Alec mumbled, looking crestfallen like someone just ran over his dog. If he had a dog anyway. I looked at my brother, puzzled as to why he looked so resigned.

"I thought we established that already," I said dismissively, "He couldn't be a part of any other branch so it was the only logical explanation left. What's the issue with him being a Madrigal?"

"He said he knew mum," Alec muttered, "They must have been in love when he was still a young agent. That's why he was so concerned that he broke into the manor. He still loves her." I looked at him, incredulous for a minute, before I decided to answer.

"I'm supposed to be the dramatic one Al," I replied, "They may have known each other but that doesn't mean they were dating. And- I can't believe I'm saying this because knowing who your parents dated is just _wrong_- don't you think mum would have told us? Or dad? Nick said he knew dad too, remember? Don't you think dad would remember if his wife dated a friend of his?"

"I don't know," Alec answered doubtfully, "Nick sounded like they were close. They must have known each other pretty well if he was willing to sneak in a booby trapped mansion to find her. Then again, why he would have to _sneak_ in is beyond me. If they were really that close, you'd think they keep in touch over the years. Or at least ring a doorbell when they want to visit. Still… it sounds like they were really close. Nick hinted at a possible relationship."

"Mum and Uncle Dan are really close too," I reminded him, "And she never showed any sign of wanting to kiss _him_. She's friends with Uncle Luke and that's all they are. Close friends yes, but just that _friends._ They were never together."

"Or were they?" Aiden cut in with a totally straight face, "Maybe we're actually long lost triplets and never knew it. Maybe you're actually my little sis, Ev."

"Gross!" I laughed, and the other two follow, successfully breaking the tension in the room. I tried to ignore the blush on my face with very little success. Thankfully my cinnamon colored skin was dark enough to show only the merest sign of red. Only Alec, a knowing smirk on his face that infuriated me, looked expectantly in my direction.

My amber eyes glared at him even as I tried to stop the fluttering feel in my stomach when Aiden glanced at me. Sometimes it was a royal pain hanging out with boys so much. But Alec was my twin and Aiden was like a brother to me. At least I think he was a brother to me. Lately I wasn't sure of anything, least why I can't treat Aiden like I do Alec all the time. Maybe it's because…

"Are there any personal files of him?" Alec asked, breaking her line of thought, "Any other information we can find?"

"A few more, I think," Aiden said and concentrated on the screen. A second later several files popped into the screen. "They have a personal file for each suspected Madrigal. Looks like they haven't been updated for almost eighteen years though. Want to see one on your mum?" Alec looked at me, the question obvious in his eyes. I felt guilty for snooping on my mum like this but I still nodded.

"Okay," Alec answered for us, his voice unsure. He probably hated invading mum's privacy even more than me. Before we had a second to object however, or come to our sense, Aiden opened the file.

**Name: Amy Cahill / Home: Boston, Massachusetts / Birth Date: x/x/ 1995**

**Branch: Madrigal / Danger Level: Nine / Age: Fourteen**

**Surviving Relatives:**

**Dan Cahill: Age 11; Madrigal Agent**

**Fiske Cahill: Age 67; Madrigal Agent**

**Saladin: Age Unknown; Madrigal Agent**

**Beatrice Cahill: Age Unknown; Neutral (Also known as Bloody Beatrice or Mad Cat Lady)**

**Strengths: Clever and quick, the Cahill girl is known as the brains of the team. Recent surveillance shows however that her intelligence was vastly undermined by previous Lucian agents. (These agents will now be fed to the snake pit.) A brilliant mind and an avid reader, Amy Cahill would have been a formidable enemy even if she didn't prove to have a viper side to her. Cunning and talented, this girl is a level nine danger for a reason. Her capabilities include foreign languages, various and possibly lethal martial arts, musical talent, espionage, subterfuge, and a 4.2 GPA. The Lucian headquarters is afraid to say we have another Grace Cahill in our hands. **

**Weaknesses: Despite her strengths, the Cahill girl, like every other Madrigal will do anything to help protect those she cares about. Her Achilles heel seems to be her brother Daniel Cahill. She also holds great affection for Nellie Gomez, a cat named Saladin, Fiske Cahill, and surprisingly the branch leader's son, Ian Kabra. Another proven weak link can be found in her Madrigal teammates. She is said to be especially attached to Nicholas Alvarez with whom she shares a special connection to. **

Alec Cahill POV 

"I was right," I said, whitening until my naturally pale skin was practically ghostly, "They were dating. Maybe it was ten, fifteen, twenty years ago but they still dated!"

"It just said they had a 'special connection'," Evelyn argued, although even she looked a little perplexed, "That doesn't mean she had her tongue down his throat!"

"Evelyn!" Aiden yelped, "I didn't need those images in my head!"

"Okay guys, calm down," I said even though I was nearly panicking myself, "We're jumping to conclusions. Aiden, check Nicholas's files next. I want to see what the Lucians thought of him."

"Whatever you say, commander," Aiden joked, giving me a salute, his disheveled chestnut brown hair falling over his eyes. A minute later, Aiden had crushed through the files protections and another document had immediately popped into screen.

**Name: Nicholas Verlac / Home: London, England / Birth Date: 6/20/1995**

**Branch: Madrigal / Danger Level: Ten / Age: 14**

**Surviving Relatives: Unconfirmed**

**Strengths: Just pray that you never have to meet him. If by some chance you do come in contact with him, turn in the other direction and run like hell. **

**Weaknesses: Amy Cahill. But you might want to stay away from her as well if you value your life at all and would like to avoid a long, painful death. **

**Personal Information: Unconfirmed**

Evelyn Cahill POV

"Well that was disappointingly unenlightening," Aiden commented, looking up from the screen, "Your mystery man seems to get more and more intriguing. And dangerous. Are you sure you want to mess with this person? Someone might get seriously hurt."

"We're not doing anything to him," I argued, "We just want to know who he is and why he's sneaking around our house. Oh, and if he ever dated mum at all."

"Do the Lucians have nothing else on him?" Alec asked, the dread in his voice replaced by genuine curiosity, "They usually try to find anything they can on a possible adversary. This is weird."

"I know, right?" Aiden added, shaking his head, "A Lucian is guaranteed to be majorly suspicious. They'd add the color of your toothbrush or what type of cereal you had in the morning to their databases if they had to. Their unofficial motto is basically "It's not being paranoid if someone really is out to get you." But this time, they've got nothing."

"How about the Madrigal files?" I asked quietly, amber eyes flitting away from the screen, "How long would it take you to bypass the firewalls?" Not, "Can you bypass these defenses?" or "Will you help us crack the code?" I didn't need to. A Madrigal is always guaranteed two things. One, they'd do the impossible. Two, they'd do the impossible to help another Madrigal.

"A week," Aiden finally answered, "Possibly only five days if I hurry with it. Any other leads on Verlac?" I was just about to answer "no" when Alec cut in.

"Yes," he replied, looking thoughtful, "Haven't you noticed how the screen mentioned that mum was fond of her Madrigal team members? And if Nicholas was a Madrigal around then, it stands to reason that he was part of her team. That would explain the 'special connection' they seem to have. We can't interrogate mum about this now but weren't Aunt Mel and Uncle Luke also part of the team?"

"So you want to ask my mum about this Nicholas person?" Aiden guessed easily, "I suppose that is a good idea. We can go have a snake now. Mum invited you two after all."

"I guess I'm feeling hungry anyway," I answered, getting up and smoothing the white satin creases on my dress, "Are you boys coming?" The two stood up and followed me as I led the way to the kitchen, Aiden seemingly carefree while Alec lagged behind, looking as stoic and in control as ever. I tried not to sigh from envy. The day Alec Cahill looked disheveled is the day hell would freeze over.

"Hey Aunt Mel," I called out, "We're here to raid your kitchen now." My aunt appeared at the doorway, sweet and composed, with a mug of warm coffee in her hands. Over her shoulder, I could see plates of éclairs, croissants, and sugar cookies placed on the glass table.

"I thought you'd break down sooner or later," Aunt Mel replied, smiling as she gestured to the tantalizing array of snacks behind her, "What would you like? Coffee? Tea? Soft drink?"

"Tea will be fine," Alec answered, plopping down on the nearest chair, "Earl Grey preferably."

"With no sugar then?" Aunt Melissa asked and poured a cup when Alec nodded, "I swear one day you kids have to eat normal teenager food not meant for a business executive. So how are your parents then? Ian's not getting into any trouble I hope."

"Dad's being really tame actually," I answered, taking a seat next to Alec, "Nothing more than an occasional illegal Coca Cola shipment. And maybe a borrowed Picasso or two. But really Uncle Jonah shouldn't leave them lying around the stronghold like that."

"Typical Lucian," Aunt Melissa said chuckling, "And how is Amy? I take it she isn't aware of the Picasso business going on? She'd blow a gasket is she knew."

"Mum's been gone for a while," Alec answered, peering at Melissa intently to see if she had any reaction to the news, "To be honest, she looked quite… exited." At first their aunt's face appeared blank before her sky blue eyes brightened in understanding and she smiled.

"You know," I accused, much to Aiden and Alec's confusion, "What did mum tell you?"

"Well she wasn't very definite," Aunt Melissa hinted, purposefully dancing around the question, "It's a suspicion she has actually and she wanted to go check it out. It made her very happy."

"But what is it?" Alec pressed, "What's her suspicion?"

"I think she'd rather tell you that herself Evelyn," Aunt Melissa replied, "She was practically jumping up and down when she knew. Humor her; she can't wait to tell you." Alec didn't look very satisfied with the explanation but he let it go. I knew just what my brother was thinking. If Aunt Melissa thought it was good than it couldn't hurt mum. Instead he asked the other question burning on his mind.

"Aunt Mel," Alec began, "Do you remember what it was like when you were only a beginning Madrigal agent?" Her aunt looked surprised by the odd question but not at all angry.

"Well that's random," Aunt Melissa commented, "But I'm not that old, Alec. I think I can remember. Any reason for this particular interest though? I can't believe it has to do with my past?"

"We're just curious Mum," Aiden interjected, "We're going to be Madrigal agents too after we complete our training. We just want to know what it entails. You were in a group, right?"

"You're right," Aunt Melissa nodded, smiling absently, "We went through so much together. They became my closest friends, my greatest confidents, even after all these years. When you're facing danger together, you have to learn to trust your team mates. And we got into so much trouble together! It almost got to the part where they threatened to separate us if we caused any more mischief. You three will probably be in a team together."

"That would be great," Alec prompted, "Who were you on a team with?"

""I was on a team with Amy of course," Aunt Melissa said, stirring her coffee with a silver spoon, "Your father was an honorary member actually although he hadn't been granted partial Madrigal status then. I was also team members with Luke, Mark, Adrian, Brianna, Mina and-"She paused, a feeling flitting past her face. She seemed sad? Regretful?

"-Nicholas Verlac," Alec finished for her, drumming his long pianist fingers on the table top, "He was also on your team, wasn't he?" She looked shocked, her fingers involuntarily tensing on the mug. Aunt Melissa didn't look at anyone else; her attention was focused solely on Alec. Finally the mug couldn't seem to take the pressure anymore and shattered on her fingers. She finally moved, surprise coloring her face as she looked down on the broken pieces of ceramic glass n the floor and the hot, black coffee staining her pale fingers.

"Where did you hear that name?" Aunt Melissa demanded, ignoring the mess in her stainless kitchen, "Tell me the truth Alexander. I need to know."

"It was on the back of a picture," Alec answered, the lie dropping easily from his lips despite how startled he looked from Aunt Melissa's reaction, "We were looking through a photo album and a bunch of you were in a picture with him. I'm sorry for mentioning it. I didn't think you'd be so upset."

I tried not to gape at my brother. I don't think either of us had ever lied to Aunt Mel like that. From the look on Aiden's face, I didn't think he had either. Luckily Aunt Melissa was concentrating so much on Alec's expression that she didn't see our expressions.

"No, it's alright," Aunt Mel said, looking less upset, "You didn't know and I shouldn't have acted like that, Nick just brings up old memories that I'd rather forget. He was a close friend of mine and a member of the team. He… died… in a mission." I waited for her to continue but it became obvious after a few more seconds that she wasn't going to.

A minute later Aunt Melissa got up and began cleaning the mess, her sky blue eyes not looking at any of us. If I focused a little, I could see the slight trembling in her hands. She seemed genuinely regretful when she mentioned the man's death and despite Aunt Mel's Lucian nature, I doubted that she would ever lie to us about something like this. So she must have believed that he was dead. And the merest mention of him spooked her. What, I wondered, could be so terrible that it could make even my perfectly calm and composed aunt look so unsure of herself?

"Are you sure he's dead?" Alec persisted, despite the warning glare I shot him, "Have you actually seen a body?" I looked at him in alarm. Could my brother actually be that rude?

"He disappeared a long time ago," Aunt Melissa said, more to herself than to us, "If he was alive, he would have contacted us. He knew we would have helped him no matter what. He knew we wouldn't have cared about that. We would break any rules to have helped him. "

"What?" Alec asked as I got up to help clear the table, "What wouldn't you care about?" She looked at us, her sky blue eyes perfectly clear and closed like a barrier had been thrown over them.

"I think that should be the end of the conversation Alec," Aunt Melissa said firmly before her eyes softened, "You're a curious boy, I know that. But sometimes the past must stay just that, the past. Don't go digging around for any mysteries now. The truth will only bring more sorrow."

"So you won't tell us," Alec said bluntly, looking her straight in the eye. Aunt Melissa just stared back steadily, facing the jade green orbs with determination.

"No, I won't," she replied, shaking her head, "But if you want to know the answers than ask Amy. It's her decision on whether or not you should know. It's her secret Alec. I'm sorry. "

Alec nodded, looking resigned, although I knew this wasn't going to be the end of it. As for me, I was still undecided. If this man really was Nicholas Verlac… then what? How could he evade the Madrigals for so long? What secre6ts did he have? And why did this supposedly dead man choose not to contact his closest friends for almost two decades? I looked over the table to meet a pair of jade green eyes looking back at me. My brother's gaze burned with such determination that I instantly knew what we were going to do.

"This isn't over," Alec whispered, "We're going to see Nick again."

_**Technically I don't own the 39 Clues. Technically I'll still write stories for it anyway. Technically the world is secretly being overthrown by a mafia of giant mutant monkey geniuses. Well, maybe not the last one. But I want you to review this story anyway. **_


	5. Chapter 5

Cahill's In The Future: Secrets of a Cahill

Chapter 5: A Dose of (Cahill) Normalcy

Alec Cahill POV

I was loath to admit it but even I had to concede the fact that Nicholas Verlac wouldn't be fount until he wanted to be. And apparently he didn't want to be. Evelyn and I had combed the extensive grounds every hour for the last two days and we found absolutely nada. Considering the fact that I know the manor grounds like the back of my hand and had checked every possible nook and cranny in this giant house, it was a near miracle that the man still wasn't found. If nothing else he would rock a game of hide and seek.

So the days continued to pass one after another. I kept trying to avoid Chelsea and found school to get a little tedious. So tedious in fact that I seriously began to give thought to the idea of dropping out for a year. I was a thirteen year old doing a high school senior's work for God's sake. Surely it wouldn't matter if I skipped a couple of months. But I knew mum would kill me if I as much as voiced the thought so I kept my mouth shut and continued my studies.

Aiden had holed himself up in his room the second he got home from school, idly trying to break through the Madrigal firewalls. Evelyn had become increasingly short tempered and I had a feeling it had to do with the random new girl flirting with a certain blue eyed computer genius. My little sister was so deep in denial that it surprised me sometimes. Even my safe haven at the library had begun to wear me out. There's only so many times you could reread Shakespeare's priceless original works before the irresistible urge to pull out your hair gets to you.

I can't believe I'm saying this but I, Alexander Arthur Cahill, was completely and utterly bored. And I had no idea how to handle it. To be honest here, I'd never actually had to deal with boredom. There was always something to do, a new advanced fighting technique to be learned or a Cahill relative to bother. Sigh, I think I'm even missing Grandma Isabel and Grandpa Vikram. Is that thought depressing or what?

So finally, with nothing better to do, I decided too traipse through the manor to find Evelyn. I was regretting my hasty decision only twenty minutes later. The Cahill ancestral home was a gigantic maze filled with sprawling pathways, deserted corridors and twisting dead ends. Secrets are entombed deep within every niche and desperate hopes line the alcoves. The manor is shrouded in mystery and the deep secrets of Cahill's from century's past.

Even though I could find my way through these room with reasonable accuracy, the beautiful priceless paintings from Italy that lined every wall, the custom made Argentinean jade silk curtains that adorned each crystal window, and the expensive mahogany or oak furniture from the deep recess of Papua New Guinea were beginning to drive me mad. Just as I was about to loose my last shred of sanity- and let's face, I didn't have that much to begin with- I saw Evelyn happily drinking a glass of pink lemonade on a terrace out looking the butterfly garden.

"Hi," she chirped, waving me inside, "want some lemonade? I made it myself." I looked warily at the plastic sup of possibly lethal pink death. Vaguely I wondered if Evelyn would take offense if I accused her of poisoning. My sister had many,_ many_ talents. Cooking, however, had never been one of them. I'm not even sure if my sister had ever even made a cup of tea for herself. We usually just have chef's do such mundane things.

But she was glaring at me so… there had to be a case full of antidotes in the house of a Lucian head, right? My father must have kept a cache at hand for emergencies like… oh say, Ev's cooking? Either way, bottom's up. Please don't let me die a pink frothy beverage death.

"Who are you and what have you done with my twin sister?" I demanded, after I'd taken a cautious sip, "There's no way Evelyn would make something that tastes so good!"

"My cooking's not that bad," Evelyn protested, crossing her arms.

"You're right," I agreed, "Its worse. Who's the one who poisoned Benny the bunny rabbit last year?"

"It wasn't my fault," Evelyn argued, "How was I supposed to know that chocolate covered cabbages would make the rabbit sick. He seemed to like it when I gave it to him."

"Of course he seemed to like it," I answered, exasperated, "It was your turn to take care of him and you hadn't fed him for three days! The poor rabbit was starving!"

"So?" she asked, sulkily, "Now Benny can hop over heaven and get all the carrots he can eat. He should be thanking me. More to the point he wasn't much of a loss anyway." I tried not to gape at her but it was hard.

"Evelyn," I finally answered, "Remind me to never allow you to buy a pet again. You're a puppy's worst nightmare. So who did you really bribe to make this lemonade?"

"Don't you trust me?" Evelyn pouted, looking hurt.

"Not when it comes to cooking," I said reasonably, not buying the hurt voice for a second. She laughed in understating.

"It was the chef's doing," she confessed, "He tried to copy Aunt Nellie's magic recipe but you know no one can ever make it as good as hers. I heard that her personal cooking show is doing a segment in London today. Why don't we call her and tell her we're visiting?" I hesitated. The offer was tempting but… Evelyn who saw my hesitation quickly added.

"I know you want to find Nick," she cajoled, "But we've been trying so hard and we found nothing. Face it, the man's not going to be found unless he wants to be. We might as well be doing something else for a little while. Besides you never know, Aunt Nellie might even make her famous Tasmanian devil chocolate fire cake. Do you really want to pass that up?" Yeah, that was the cinch.

"Okay," I agreed, suddenly feeling loads cheerier just to have something to do. I got up and ran inside, Evelyn following in a more controlled pace, as I rushed to the phone.

"Aunt Nellie," I greeted happily on the phone, "We heard that you were in England this weekend and decided that we must have a slice of your delicious cake. I mean um… visit you."

"Good to hear from you too kiddos," Aunt Nellie laughed into the phone, "How's Amy and the Cobra?" Despite the fact that mum and dad had been married for fifteen years, Aunt Nellie _still_ insisted on calling dad Cobra. So did Uncle Dan actually.

"Mum's not home," I answered, "Neither is dad."

"Really," my ever oblivious, crazy aunt asked, "What were they thinking leaving a pair of sweet, innocent, conniving little monsters like you two alone in the mansion? Do they want the manor to flood again?"

"That was only one time," Evelyn protested from beside me, "And you people never let it go. Honestly we're much more mature now. We haven't done anything."

Expect try to break into coded Madrigal files and kept company with a supposedly dead man who may or may not be a previous Madrigal agent who might be in love with their mum. But other than that, things were going swimmingly.

"Right," Aunt Nellie drawled, "Like with the Empire State building mishap? And the Johnny Depp mishap? And the time you tried to feed the prime minister to a shark?"

"Delilah was hungry," I replied, defensively, "And besides Mr. Wilmer said he loved seafood. Personally I think it was rather rude of him to run out of the shark tank like that. Delilah was only trying to be nice."

"She nearly ate the Minister's leg," Aunt Nellie reminded us, "Poor Mr. Winston's is suffering from post traumatic delusions now. They made a new law banning you two from Parliament."

"They overreacted," Evelyn said dismissively, "How's Uncle Ashton by the way? Did he enjoy visiting the rolling hills of Ireland?"

"Yeah, he loved visiting his home country," Aunt Nellie said, referring to her husband, the fun, energetic, and possibly only man who would willingly step into a car with Aunt Nellie who is not either a) Uncle Dan or b) insane. "Would you like me to drive by and pick you up? I can take the day off and we'll have a lot of fun."

"That's great Aunt Nellie!" Evelyn replied, energetically, "But please don't bother to pick us up. We'll take the limo and meet you." Madrigals may be fearless but they're not completely reckless and stupid. (Uncle Dan exempt) Besides Aunt Nellie's driving was _scary._

"Great," she said, "So why don't we meet at the new sushi hotspot in Piccadilly? I heard it blends exotic types of Indian spices with Korean and Japanese cooking styles. It'll be great!"

See now when Aunt Nellie normally thinks something is great, than I wisely disagree out of self preservation. But this time I was in a complete agreement.

"Got it," I answered to the phone, "See you in an hour." Soon the limo pulled up to the driveway of one of the most coveted restaurants in England for the moment. Reservations were said to take months to be planned out in advance but Aunt Nellie seemed to have pulled a few strings in the food business and gotten us front row seats. When we walked into the restaurant, she waved at us from one of the steel tables.

Nellie Gomez may not have been my real aunt but she was definitely a major constant in my life. Well as much of a constant as you can be when you're hopping from country to country with your super famous cooking show. Whenever mum and dad have to jet off for branch business, Evelyn and I would stay with Aunt Nellie. Or Uncle Dan. Or Aunt Natalie. Or Uncle Hamilton. Or… you get the point.

If you're a Cahill, you're life doesn't hold much stability and assurance. You always have to be on the look out for changing alliances, shifted revenge, or stabs aimed at your back. But even though Aunt Nellie was buried deep in the tangles of Cahill life, she was first and foremost Nellie Gomez, crazy, fun, colorful and exotic. I'd trust her with my life.

Her dark blond hair was dyed blue and purple now which oddly looked good with her three piece powder blue Armani suit. She had several colorful bangles on one arm and a neon green Incredible Hulk watch on the other. A glittering green snake nose ring, the same shade of emerald as her eye shadow, sparkled from its spot on her nose.

"Hey kiddos!" Aunt Nellie yelled, "Over here!" I'm not kidding. She really yelled. I felt a red blush creeping up my face as everyone in the restaurant turned to look at us. They had an "Aw- isn't- that- adorable- ?" look on their face that only intensified my blush. My pale skin didn't exactly help either. Unlike Evelyn whose rosy complexion only showed a tint of red.

"Aunt Nellie," Evelyn hissed, "We're not kiddos! We're thirteen!" Somehow I don't think it helped our "we're- not- kids" campaign when Aunt Nellie threw her head back and laughed.

"Oh, you guys are priceless," Nellie said, chuckling, "Just like Dan was at that age whenever I called him kiddo. Alec, do you know that you're face currently resembles an overripe tomato?"

"I noticed," I replied, dryly, sitting down across from her. Being compared to Uncle Dan did not help. I mean I loved the guy but he was under the impression that he was some sort of a ninja master half his teenage life. And what is it with the _Pokemon _underwear? Guys who are heroic and dangerous Madrigal agents should not wear _Pokemon_ underwear.

"So, has Amy told you the news?" Aunt Nellie asked, waving the waiter over and giving him a long and complicated order in a stream of flawless Japanese. "Aren't you guys psyched?"

"We would be if we had a clue about what you guys keep talking about," Evelyn said, moodily, as I gave my order- also in a rapid flow of Japanese- to a waiter who was gaping at Aunt Nellie like some type of crazed blowfish.

"You don't know," Nellie asked, looking obviously surprised before she nodded in understanding, "Ah, Amy must want to tell you herself. Sorry kiddos." For once Evelyn didn't blow up after being called a 'kiddo'. She couldn't because the waiter chose to interrupt us then.

"Are you Nellie Gomez?" he asked in halting English. When she nodded warily, maybe expecting a Cahill reference, he let loose a torrent of exited Japanese and began gushing. I do not kid you. He actually gushed here.

"I am your biggest fan! I watch your show every night. Your segment with the Indian spices in the Chinese moon cake and cho min was genius! And I absolutely adored your monk chi tea recipe. Using boiled salamander eggs was so clever! I actually felt more in tuned with my inner self than ever before! Can I have your autograph?"

And people wonder why Cahill's- and Aunt Nellie- don't like going out in public.

"Well, always happy to meet a fan I suppose," Aunt Nellie said, looking a little unnerved as she signed her signature on a blank sheet, "It's very nice to meet you. Can we get our food now?"

"Oh… yes," the waiter stammered, looking flustered as he rushed back to the safe haven that is the kitchen.

"Wait!" Evelyn called, hopelessly before she slumped down on her seat and groaned, "Great! The idiot left before I could even give my order! Now what do I do?" I patted her hand sympathetically.

"You can share with me," I offered, "I ordered a grilled crawfish with rice padding and lemon wedges. Will that be alright or do you want something else?"

"I'm fine," Evelyn answered, nodding before she turned her attention back to Aunt Nellie, "How's Uncle Ashton? Couldn't he come visit today?" Aunt Nellie shook her head as the waiter arrived with our food. Carefully, I split mine in half and placed it on Evelyn's plate.

"So," Aunt Nellie began, popping one of the multicolored balls of fried dough into her mouth, "I haven't seen you two in a while. What new trouble are you guys up to?"

Evelyn Cahill POV

My cell phone rang in the middle of the meal, just as Alec was telling Aunt Nellie about the time we smuggled an anaconda into a racing show and nearly scared half the horses to death just so we could prove to Tania- a snotty nosed Ekat with an infatuation for Alec- that horses couldn't be scared to death by a snake. Aunt Nellie had been laughing and asking questions the whole time as she regaled us with her own wacky stories, the opposite of what our parents would have done. This is just another example of what a cool relative Aunt Nell is.

"Evelyn Cahill speaking," I said into the phone, gasping a little as I tried to recover from all of the laughing, "Who is it?"

"Evelyn, it's me!" the frantic voice of my younger cousin, Kieran Wizard, answered, "Mum's having the baby!"

"Wait, what!" I shrieked, nearly splitting out my cold chamomile tea and catching the interest of several people in the shop. Alec was halfway into the process of standing up, a concerned look showing on his face, before I stopped him.

"The ambulance is taking her to the hospital now," Kieran informed me, sounding only a minute away from being hysterical, "She was screaming and Daddy's at tour _and what do I do_?" Alec gave me a questioning look as I winced.

"Okay, then," I paused, trying to be helpful, "Who's in the house now? Can he reach your father?"

"I'm alone," Kieran sniffed, "It's the maid's day off I think. I'm scared Evelyn. What do I do?"

"Ask Alec for help," I suggested, and handed the cell over to my brother quickly. He looked puzzled but took the cell obediently and gave simple instructions to Kieran as the situation was explained. I breathed a sigh of uncontained relief. I swear I don't know what I would do without Alec's calm planning. I'm not nearly as good with that kind of thing.

"Lock the door and keep yourself busy," Alec instructed, standing up and shrugging on his leather jacket, one hand still on the cell, "Watch a movie or listen to some music, okay? We'll be there as soon as possible."

With one hand, he fished into his pocket and withdrew a checkbook and a pen. Through all this, his voice was matter-of-fact and soothing; his actions naturally confident and graceful.

"Check please," he called to a passing waiter before he turned back to his cell and began dialing, "Hello Uncle Jonah, where are you now? What do you mean you're in Finland? Yes, that's a problem! Hate to break it to you Uncle but Aunt Catherine is currently in labor. No Uncle, this is not one of my elaborate jokes. Hold on, Evelyn will explain everything. Aunt Nellie, we need you to drive us to the airport."

"Sure," Nellie agreed easily as Alec tossed me the cell. She was so used to these rapid missions with mum and Uncle Dan that she probably knew not to question a Cahill in a hurry. Especially ones who have been given serious mixed martial arts training.

Despite my reservations about Aunt Nellie at the wheel, I quickly followed her to the black SUV parked outside as Alec paid the bill. Uncle Jonah took the news that his wife was pregnant much like Kieran and I did, with borderline hysterical screaming. I was completely clueless as to what to do before Alec snatched the cell out of my hand and began giving orders to Uncle Jonah. The rest was all a blur after that.

Aunt Nellie got us to the private airport in record time with her manic driving where Alec had a jet chartered to take us to New York City- right now. I don't know how he did it, although I have the feeling that a large sum of money and several gruesome threats were involved, but within half an hour a small luxury speed jet had been readied and we had the clearance to fly out of the country.

I must have fallen asleep on the flight because the next thing I know, my brother was shaking me awake and leading my semi-asleep form over to a dark limo idling on the curb. After another fast ride we were pulling up by the hospital, another limo with Kieran inside coming up behind us. Through all of this chaos, the only thing I was sure of was the steady presence of my twin.

"Kieran, are you okay?" Alec asked, looking worried as our small cousin ran up to us. I enveloped him in a comforting hug when I saw him. Finally his small, tear stained face looked up toward Alec, with big trembling eyes. Under the fluorescent lighting of the parking lot, I saw his light chocolate latte colored skin a pale, waxy shade. My enthusiastic, super talented Janus cousin actually looked his young age for once.

"Now, what do we do?" Kieran asked, looking predictably, like everyone else, toward Alec for the answers. I thought this would make me jealous but I had become used to my brother's dependability. Alec gestured to the hospital in reply, and for some bizarre reason, let a grin overcome his face.

"Now we find out who you new sibling is," Alec informed him.

_**I am so sorry that it took so long to post this but my computer hasn't been working for a while so I had to do the best I could. Again, sorry! **_


	6. Chapter 6

Cahill's In The Future: Secrets of a Cahill

Chapter 6: Hello, Little Kayla!

Kieran Wizard POV

Turns out that it wasn't quite as easy as that. We had to relax in the waiting room as mum began to have her contractions and dad, who showed up just ten minutes after us, stayed with her in the maternity ward. No let me correct that. Only one of us actually relaxed. _Alec_ was the only one who lounged across the beige couch, looking without a care in the world as usual while several of the teenage girls in the room began giving him covert- and in most cases, not so covert- glances.

Evelyn on the other hand paced up and down the rooms tiled floor, turning from one frenzied emotion to the other. So far, I've seen her expressive amber eyes reflect excitement, worry, fear, uncertainty, astonishment, and a whole host of other sensations. Her dark violet top with a cream colored vest over it swished around with her, highlighting the gold strands in her auburn hair.

As I looked from one to the other, I silently wondered how those two could have ended up as siblings, and even more surprising, twins. Evelyn flitted from one emotion to the other like a tornado, each one as passionate and fervent as the ones before, but always very brief. She was loyal like hell but could never stand still and always found herself in the center of everything going on at once. She could be frightening and caring; intimidating and entirely welcoming. With her, you had no idea what was going on next. She was like a piece of summer, beautiful but utterly impulsive, making you unsure of what would happen next.

If Evelyn was summer than Alec was definitely winter. He was her polar opposite with his icy good looks, intimidating nature, and standoffish manners. He was always confident, calm, incredibly precise, and immaculately polite but he gave off a vibe that made it clear you would have to prove yourself to earn his respect. Even when I knew that he was fond of me, I found myself double guessing all my movements around him, as though unsure of what he would approve and always worrying about whether or not I'll ever be as graceful as him. But while Evelyn could pick one emotion and then another in minutes, Alec was harder to please but if you did earn his respect than it took a damn lot to get rid of it.

But despite their differences, the two were extraordinarily close and it didn't take an Ekat to know that both of the young Madrigals would have no qualms about sacrificing people to save the other. Even now Evelyn kept looking back at Alec as though for assurance and the older boy had a concerned look on his handsome face as he watched his twin pace. Watching them, Kieran felt a moment of happiness. Maybe when the baby was born… well, it would be cool to have someone so close to you like that. Alec and Evelyn were so lucky.

He was brought out of his thoughts as a frenzied nurse immediately rushed into the room, a huge smile on her face. Evelyn spun around to face the woman whereas Alec just straightened up and looked faintly bored.

"The baby has come out," the nurse announced, making me jump up as my stomach clenched. I suddenly felt torn between excitement and terror.

"It was an easy birth than?" Alec asked, walking up to the woman. Her eyes widened at the young teen's easy confidence and even from here, I could see the dark blush suffuse her cheeks.

"Well, y-yes," she stammered, "Are you the son then?" Alec didn't bother to give her a second look as he slipped past the door and toward the maternity ward. Only a Cahill could be that blatantly rude, manage to get away with it and still seem faultless.

"He's her nephew actually," Evelyn explained, hastily to the wide eyed nurse before grabbing my hand and pulling me with her as we followed her twin. I just followed in a dazed sort of way, seeing but not registering the smell of antiseptic that rank through the walls, the bare whitewashed look of the rooms or the plain fluorescent lighting that seemed to make nearly anyone look sickly.

"Are you okay Kieran?" Evelyn asked, looking genuinely concerned as I looked up to see her face. Unlike everyone else, her face looked as healthy as though she had just had a relaxing vacation at the Caribbean.

"Okay… I think," I gulped and gestured nervously to the upholstery, "Amazing decorating techniques, no?"

"No," Evelyn deadpanned, "They suck."

"Are you two coming?" Alec asked from ahead of them as he came to pause by a closed door way that had Wizard inscribed across it, "Let's see who your new sibling is Kieran."

"Right," I mumbled, taking a deep breath and stepping into the ward. The first thing I saw was my mother, looking tired but beaming as she rested against the white sheets. She was sitting up and his father was standing by her, a look of awe and a huge grin on his face as he looked down at the little bundle in her arms. They looked up as I entered, Alec and Evelyn following a respectable distance behind, and wordlessly held out the bundle for me to see.

The baby was a dark rose, a small tuft of dark brown hair on top of her head. Her eyes were closed and she seemed unbelievably small with her entire hand about the size of my finger. She was slightly moist looking and had the wrinkly look of a new born on her.

I felt no connection to her whatsoever.

"Oh, she's beautiful," Evelyn breathed, quickly slipping past the doorway and holding out her arms as mum placed the bundle in her arms. "What's her name?"

"Kayla Reline Wizard," my dad answered with obvious pride, "The newest addition to the Wizard family. She's brilliant, isn't she?"

"Exceptional, I'm sure," Alec said dryly, a small smile flitting past his face as he walked up to his sister's side to peer over Evelyn's shoulders, "She has your face Uncle Jonah but the nose, lips, and hands definitely belong to Aunt Catherine."

"Aw, aren't you the cutest little thing," Evelyn cooed to the small bundle, her face lighting up in excitement, "You're adorable! I'm your new cousin, Evelyn! And this is my brother, Alec. Say hello, Alec." Said teen looked slightly bewildered as he viewed the unconscious newborn but at the glare from his sister, he relented.

"Um… hello?" Alec began hesitantly, before adding as he saw Evelyn's dark look, "I'm… um… Alec. Nice to… meet you?"

"So are the greetings being finished, then?" a voice said cheerily, and another nurse, a tall, matronly woman with dark, chocolate brown skin and huge smile walked up to us and took the baby from Evelyn's unwilling arms, "A real beauty now, isn't she? And quite healthy too ma'am, you are very lucky to have her. So, will there be a family party with our little guest of honor happening any time soon?"

Mum and dad exchanged bemused looks while Evelyn snickered and Alec bit his lip to keep from laughing. I could see what they found so funny. A family party to celebrate the arrival of a new Janus? Yeah right, the Cahill's would be trying to strangle each other long before the apple pie came out. It's at times like these that I really wonder what it would be like to have a normal family.

"Actually I think we'll pass on that," mum said awkwardly, taking the baby back from the nurse, "But thank you, we really are grateful to have her. I didn't get a chance to thank you either Alec, or you too, Evelyn, for the help you were with Kayla was being born. I'm sure Kieran was more than relieved when you two showed up." Alec waved the thanks away.

"Naturally, we'd be there," Alec said, airily, "That's what family is for after all. We were happy to help. But I'm afraid we've got a previous engagement…" He let his voice trail off.

"Of course," mum replied instantly, sharing an understanding look with the jade eyed teen, "Thank you again for coming. I suppose you have to leave now?"

"We do?" Evelyn asked, looking nonplussed.

"Yes, we do," Alec answered decisively, gently grabbing her elbow and pulling her out of the room, "Congratulations again, Uncle Jonah, Aunt Catherine. Kieran, I'm sure you're just dying to get to know your new baby sister."

Evelyn looked like she wanted to object but one look at her brother's stern face, told her that this was not the time. I just looked pleadingly at the two, silently begging them not top lave me alone with this new baby. I had nothing in common with her and no idea what to do. My stomach churned in fear as I gazed hopefully at my two possible rescuers.

Evelyn just looked like she had no idea what was going on while Alec gave me a sympathetic but firm look and dragged his sister away. I was left alone to stare at the small bundle on my mother's hand, having absolutely no idea what to do. For once, I, Kieran Wizard, future leader of the Janus and all time actor, was at a loss for words.

Evelyn Cahill POV

"Why do we have to leave?" I complained, crossing my arms and jutting out my chin stubbornly as my brother waved his hand for the limo to drive up to us, "We don't _have_ any prior engagements." My brother ignored my whining and slipped into the plush interior of our darkened limo, leaving me to climb after him reluctantly.

"Don't be so thick, Ev," Alec rolled his eyes, taking out his ever present cell and beginning to dial, "Aunt Cathy obviously wanted to be alone with her family now. They just had a baby and they want Kieran to settle into this smoothly. They didn't need us there, making things even _more _difficult. Honestly, this was for the best."

"We wouldn't have caused any trouble," I disagreed, still sulking. My brother didn't reply, instead choosing to talk in smooth Chinese to a man in the cell. I tried not to roll my eyes with great difficulty. My brother was thirteen yet he acted more like my father every day, always making business calls and acting almost sickeningly responsible. I swear if he could surgically attach that cell to his ear, he would.

"Who are you talking to now?" I asked instead, watching him put his cell away. He blinked at me, jade green eyes only lightened against his jet-black hair and pale skin. My brother was incredibly handsome, but wore his looks in an almost offhand way like he didn't care which way or another. And knowing Alec, it probably didn't matter to him at all.

Note to self: convince Alec to play football instead of making corporate business calls and keeping track of stocks sometime in the near future.

"Mr. Chang," Alec answered, sighing when he saw the blank look on my face and then elaborated, "Our stockbroker Ev. Seeing Aunt Catherine made me remember something. Maternity products are being in high demand this year and I wanted Mr. Chang to buy more of the stocks. And to sell all of our MSFT stocks, Microsoft Corporation is going down and I don't want any losses in the tech field."

"But I thought it was becoming a monopoly," I asked, feeling puzzled, "Everyone has Microsoft Word and Microsoft Excel."

"Exactly," Alec said, sounding annoyed like I should be understanding this, "_Everyone_ has it. What will MSFT sell when the whole world already owns the software? They're producing nothing new and the stocks are going lower and lower every minute." I shook my head in exasperation.

"You're keeping track of all this?" I voiced, my voice echoing disbelief, "And you're only freaking _thirteen years old?"_ My brother shrugged.

"I'm the son of Ian Kabra," he said as though it explained everything. And I suppose it did.

"So what do we do now then?" I complained, falling back against the comfortable seat, "Aunt Nellie is back in _England_, the next plane doesn't leave until another eight _hours_ and I'm _bored_."

"Whatever you want to do, I guess," Alec said nonchalantly, opening his cell again. Even though I couldn't see my reflection in the limo, I knew I got a devilish gleam in my eye as an idea came to me. Before my brother could start dialing again, I quickly interfered.

"Anything?" I said sweetly, trying not to grin.

"Sure," Alec answered, innocently, looking distracted as he looked up from the cell, "Anything you want." Poor boy wouldn't know what hit him.

"Okay then," I answered gleefully, "Than I want to go shopping."

Alec Cahill POV

It had only been an hour and I was completely willing to admit defeat. I had no idea at all how girls could stand this. We had visited eight stores already, and Evelyn had happily bought whatever caught her eye. The fact that I was paying for everything wasn't bothering me. I had more than enough money anyway. The fact that my feet hadn't gotten a moment's rest or that I'd been carrying all the many, _many_ bags wasn't bothering me. A Madrigal was strong and used to hardships after all.

No, what was bothering me was the fact that this was completely unlike what my mum would have done. Amy Cahill was in many was every feminine but the one thing that I most loved about her was that she hated shopping with a passion only few could rival. So how, Evelyn, her perfect, look alike of a daughter could adore it so much was a mystery beyond me. Only one thing made sense in this situation.

She had inherited her shopping obsession from father.

This made an alarming amount of common sense. After all, _father_ was the one who always ordered most of the family's clothes, and_ father _always hated trying on anything less than perfect and wasn't _father_ the one who insisted on never wearing a pair of sweatpants in his life? Mum was perfectly content wearing a pair of ripped jeans and a rumpled t-shirt on informal occasions and dad didn't raise any objections to this because he loved her and he _had_ relaxed a bit more since marrying mum (or so Aunt Nat said), but still it was rather worrying to know that his father was the one who liked shopping more in the family.

"Haven't we shopped enough?" Alec asked, struggling to keep at least seven multicolored pastel bags from falling off his right arm, "Don't you think you have _enough_ clothes Ev?"

She pouted. "There's no such thing as too much clothes."

"We have to book a hotel and _I_ for one don't think that the concierge will take too well to a pair of teens straggling through their door at midnight," I retorted, "_One_ more store Evelyn and then we're _leaving_."

"You're no fun. But fine, you promised me _one more store_," Evelyn sing songed as she walked over to the other side of the mall. I began to regret my decision the minute I saw the crazed gleam in her amber eyes. But I didn't run away at first notice. I'd regret that later and most likely blame it on my mind being addled by the perfume shop which was our last stop.

"_Oh no_," I said, stopping dead in my tracks as I stopped before the window of the store, "There is no way in hell that _I'm_ going in _there_." She turned to me, such an angelic smile on her beautiful face that it instantly made me weary.

"You promised," she reminded me, turning her voice to pleading, "_Please_ Alec, I _need_ your help."

I raised an eyebrow. "With what?" I asked suspiciously.

"Caring the bags, of course," Evelyn returned, brightly. I looked pointedly at the thirteen different bags in my hand and answered her.

"I'm sure you can carry _one_ bag Evelyn," I replied, "I'll stay out here waiting for you."

"No!" Evelyn said, stamping her black knee high boot against the floor, "You promised, Alec! You said we could do whatever I want! I want you to go there."

"But it's a woman's lingerie store," I stammered in protest, seeing my horrified face reflected in the department store windows that featured uh… glimpses at woman's… underclothes? "I can't go in there Evelyn! I'm a guy!" She blinked in surprise.

"Did you just say you're gay?" she asked, looking perplexed. My face reached whole new levels of red as heat rushed up to my cheeks.

"I'm not gay," I practically squeaked, "I said I was a guy!"

"Oh," she said, looking disappointed, "I thought it would be kind of cool to have a gay brother…" I narrowed my eyes at her as my sister tried to hide a grin. To anyone else she might have pulled it off but _I_ was her twin. I knew her more than anyone else.

"You're enjoying this," I accused, "You're just using this as a chance to make me squirm!"

She grinned. "Yup," she answered, cheerfully, turning around to look over her shoulder at me, "Well, aren't you coming, big brother? We have to get to the hotel soon you know."

I looked around quickly to make sure no guys were watching me before I reluctantly followed in the steps of my twin. No wonder Kieran didn't want a sister. Girls were living hell.

Evelyn Cahill POV

Oh, I was _so_ enjoying this.

If my brother wasn't so determined to follow in mother's footsteps- sans falling in love with a possible traitor/ slash hot thought- to- be- dead guy- than I would definitely suggest that he become an artist of some sort. His face alone has a wide palette of interesting colors, the pale skin making them all the harder to hide. Not to mention his gorgeous jade green eyes, so bright in its unique shade and beauty.

Still he _was_ brave. I'll admit to that as he followed me determinedly into Victoria's Secret, careful to keep his eyes away from the many types of lingerie lining the walls. The various bags I picked from the other shops, hung loosely on his arms. When a shop attendant came up to us, she raised an eyebrow at the image of Alec standing stubbornly behind me. Admittedly with his scuffed sneakers, faded jeans, and dark t-shirt, he did look a bit out of place among the silk nightgowns and ruffled bras.

Still my brother was nothing if not confident in himself and he looked up, to meet her gaze squarely on, his face expressionless although I could see the dark flush staining the back of his neck. The attendant looked his up and down appreciatively, lingering on the smooth muscle against the t-shirt and the tall, slender form before wisely deciding not to comment. Although Alec was so deep in his own embarrassment that I doubt he'd notice.

"So what would you like miss?" the attendant asked sweetly, ignoring the fact that her customer must have been at least six years younger than her, "We have a beautiful new set of silken bras out on display…"

Behind me, I'd heard the quiet choking sound of my brother as he'd heard that, and I didn't have to look at him to know that his pale face must have been scarlet under the shop lights.

"Actually," I replied, changing my tone to be just as sweet, "I was hoping to purchase several new pairs of underwear…" The attendant's eyes gleamed at the prospect of several buys.

"Of course!" she chirped, fluttering around me like a bee hovering near its queen, "We have a wonderful selection of underwear to the right of the store. I could show you…"

I shook my head absentmindedly and smiled up at her. "Oh, I think I can handle it. Thank you for the offer though." Noting my clear dismissal she nodded and quickly flitted away as I walked up toward the underwear section, my brother following like he was bout to be led to his execution.

"So, Alec, what do you think of this?" I asked, merrily, holding up a pair of hideous but very revealing tights in a leopard print, "Think I should buy it?"

"For what?" he asked suspiciously, momentary discomfort forgotten as brotherly protectiveness seeped into his tone, "Why would you buy that Evelyn?" I shrugged innocently.

"Oh, I don't know…" I replied airily, "I might have a… use for it some night, don't you think?" His mouth opened and closed several times and I felt a brief burst of pride at seeing my brother priceless. His face was a whole new shade of red- somewhere between purple and magenta.

"No, you're not going to be using it for anything!" he said, vehemently, "Y- you- you're thirteen!"

"So?" I asked, trying to push down the urge to burst out laughing as Alec face resembled an electrocuted guppy fish. Don't ask me how I know what an electrocuted guppy fish looks like. This may sound cliché, but I really _will_ have to kill you if I tell you.

The ringing of Alec's cell brought me out of my amused ponderings. I tired not to sigh, I really did, but I couldn't help but feel annoyed. I should have made it another requirement that Alec had to turn _off _his cell before we came in. He looked at me sharply for a moment, as though he could tell that I wanted to sigh in annoyance but the look on his face was strange. It was… uncertainty? Consideration? Understanding?

Than his face quickly flitted from that emotion to shock. It was plainly written across his face like it was in mine, but if one was perspective enough they might notice the few key signs. The slight tightening of the chromed metal cell, the thinning of the rose pink lips. He listened for a minute and then flipped the cell shut without a word.

"Aiden was able to crack the code," Alec told me, his voice relatively emotionless except for the slight undercurrents of tension running under them, "We can hack into the Madrigal archives."

_**Hi! I hoped everyone liked this paragraph because it was a lot of fun to write. I'll try to post the next chapter again on Friday but no promises. **_


	7. Chapter 7

Cahill's In The Future: Secrets of a Cahill

Chapter 7: More Information

Evelyn Cahill POV

"Will we charter a plane now?" I asked all thoughts of embarrassing Alec gone for the moment, as I straightened up, "Or will we go to the hotel and take the plane later?"

"Later," Alec answered, looking decided, "I need some time to think. Aiden said that he already had all the major firewalls destroyed, we just have to be there for him to disable the final trap and we'll be in."

"But don't you want to see the info?" I asked, frowning slightly, "Couldn't he email it to us?" He shook his head, and I could see the traces of disappointment on his face. He hesitated for only a minute before he nodded, looking sure of himself.

"No, it could be intercepted," Alec replied, rubbing his arm absentmindedly, "We shouldn't be hasty. Not when we're this close to the final answer about Nick."

"Alec," I hesitated, "What will we do when we find out the information. What happens to Nick? To our parents? To us?"

"I don't know yet," he admitted, "But we need to find out the information. It all comes down to that." I looked at him, still unsure. He saw my look and replied.

"This isn't the place to discuss such things Evelyn," he said, and smiled, "Besides didn't you want my opinion on your latest buy?" I looked down at the leopard print tights in my hand and shook my head. It might have been fun before but it didn't seem so amusing now.

"No," I heard myself answering, although my head just spun with the possibility of what we might find, "Let's just go to the hotel Alec. I'm tired."

My brother read my face immediately and led the way out the door. I followed behind, stopping only to express my dissatisfaction with the choices to the sales clerk and then stepping into the cool confinement of the limo. The air conditioner washed over me, small bursts of cool wind against my flushed skin and I flopped onto the dark leather with as much grace as I could muster, which was a lot less than my brothers that's for sure.

My brother was right about the hotel staff. They weren't exactly enthralled with having two late night teens straggle through the doorway, walk up to the front desk and demand their best suite. The concierge was even called down, a slightly pudgy, balding man in a boring gray suit who looked ready to tell us off a second before Alec flashed his black Visa. Suffice to say after that he was all smiles and even offered to go fetch our complimentary towels for us.

Alec declined politely while I contented myself with glowering at him. The hotel's walls were pale cream in color and the floor covered by a plush, beige carpet. Midnight blue fixtures lined the tile way and silver chandeliers sparkled from above. Tall plants lined the hallways and I wrinkled my nose as the fake vanilla and aspen smell that permuted the hotel. I had definitely seen better.

But my brother didn't seem to care about the directions as he stepped into the hotel's elevator and pressed the button to go up to the penthouse suite. The elevator's interior seemed to be made entirely of shards of glass and reflections of my brother and me stared out from every corner of the room. I studied the reflections in silence as we rode up the elevator.

My brother's face, handsome, emotionless and solemn stared back at me, his jade green eyes judging and cold in every respect. His posture was relaxed, his pale, slender hands hanging by his sides with ease but tension and excitement rolled off him in waves. His creamy complexion was only showcased off by his dark, jet-black hair that flopped down on his head, looking messy and controlled at once.

Beside his impressive form, I looked small and fragile, my reddish gold hair tumbling down in unrestrained locks and my amber eyes almost feverish in their excitement. My features were delicate but clearly expressive and now showed bubbling happiness tinged with only a fringe of anxiety. I opened my mouth, unsure whether or not to tell my reflection off, and the picture followed with rosy pink lips opening wide as though to scold something.

"Evelyn, what are you doing?" my brother interrupted my thoughts, his light eyes filled with confusion as he looked between me and the mirror.

"Um… nothing?" I answered sheepishly, looking away from the camera, "Must we stay here in this… hotel?" He smiled, no doubt expecting to face by dissatisfaction as usual, before smiling and answering patiently like he always did.

"It's just for one night Ev," Alec answered, fighting back a laugh, "Besides we'll be using the penthouse suite. We'll be fine."

"Fine," I answered, giving a long suffering sigh, as though I was making the greatest sacrifice in the world by staying in the penthouse of one of the best hotels in Boston, "Just because it's _one_ night. But if there aren't three hundred thread count Egyptian cotton sheets on my bed than I am going to sue this hotel for all it's worth."

"I'm sure they'll get that right," Alec replied, not even bothering to hide his smile as we stepped into the suite, "Will this do?" I looked around the three bedroom suite, not even having to pretend a haughty look on my face, as I reluctantly nodded.

"Okay," I answered, reluctantly, "At least they remembered to place a dozen scarlet cordillera flowers along with a Ming vase in my bedroom. I suppose I'll live." My brother shook his head.

"We're only staying in this hotel for one night," Alec reminded me, "Why do they need to spend thousands of dollars buying you precious flowers if we're just leaving in the morning?"

I stuck my nose into the air. "The flowers aren't _that_ expensive."

"The priceless original vase from the Ming dynasty on the other hand is," he replied, flopping down gracefully on the bed. I'll never understand how my brother managed to do that and still have perfect creases on his jeans. I shrugged in response.

"It's their fault for inventing that motto," I retorted, "The customer is _always_ right." He smirked.

"The customer is_ never_ right," Alec corrected, "His money on the other hand…"

"Oh, touché," I laughed, throwing several of my bags on top of the pale cream bedspread so they spilled colorful silks and cotton over the room, "Did you order dinner?"

"Don't I always?" Alec asked, nodding toward the door just as the doorbell rang, sending a silver chime throughout the room, "I believe that's for you."

I walked over to the oak door and opened it to find a tall waiter standing on the other side. A silver tray was held in his hand and as I moved aside, he came in and placed the tray in the middle of the oak table. With a small flourish, he removed the lid and showed the meal inside.

A perfectly cooked lobster, drenched in warm butter and surrounded by salad and ranch dressing stood at the center of the dish. A little to the side of the dish were two plates, a basket of freshly baked bread rolls, silver utensils, and two glasses of sparkling cider, that glowed amber under the chandelier's lights. Small wedges of lemon lay at the side of the red lobster.

'This is satisfactory," Alec nodded over to the dish, and slipped the man a few bills, "You may come back an hour later to take the dish back."

"Yes sir," the man nodded and quickly stepped out the door again as I began to cut the meal in two and place them in our appropriate plates.

"No complaints?" Alec asked me with a small smile, "Are you sure you don't want to go out on a tirade against all seafood and serving men?"

"Oh, shut up," I said irritably, throwing a bread roll at him. His hand flew out to catch it with relative ease and he sat down across from me, quiet. We shared the meal in silence, but it wasn't awkward and neither of us felt uncomfortable as we ate. I knew something was troubling my brother so I ate in peace, waiting until he felt sure enough to voice his thoughts. As the meal was halfway through, Alec hesitantly began to speak.

"Evelyn," he faltered and I watched my brother in confusion. Alec was hardly one to falter.

"Yes," I prompted, leaning forward, my amber eyes curious though I stayed calm.

"What do you think would happen if I was right?" Alec asked, in a rush. I blinked.

"Then you would be right," I answered, pointedly, "Like you always are. What parts of your thoughts are bothering you this time, Al?"

"Do you think that Nick loved mum?" he asked instead, avoiding the question.

"I wouldn't be surprised if he did," I replied, still clueless as I ripped a bread roll in half and took a bite, "But so what? I can name at least a dozen guys who like mum and at least a dozen women who adore dad. It's disgusting but it's hardly new."

"And… if mum liked Nick back?" Alec asked weakly, the emotions in his jade green eyes unhidden for once and showing troubled thoughts. I paused halfway into my second bite, not even caring that my mouth hung open like a goldfish. A trickle of what Alec said washed into my mind and I paled.

"Then, what would that mean for us?" I asked, horrified. My brother stared back at me, solemn, as he voiced the worries in my mind.

"Do we support mum or dad?" Alec asked, fingering the gilt edge of a throw pillow, "If there's a divorce, who do we go to?"

"Well, that's easy of course," I answered, looking determined. He smiled at me in relief.

"Thank goodness, I thought there was going to be a fight involved," Alec said, "So obviously we have to support…"

"Dad," I said, just as Alec finished, "…mum." We sat there for a minute, glaring at each other before Alec finally broke it off.

"What do you mean mum?" I demanded, "Of course we're going with dad!"

"Why dad?" Alec retorted, "I'm not leaving mum!"

"Because mum would be cheating on him," I exclaimed, "Dad will need our support!"

"It's not cheating if they're divorced, stupid," Alec replied, crossing his arms, "And mum _gave birth_ to you. I can't believe you'd leave her like that!"

"Oh, that's saying something," I snapped back, my fists curling, "Dad did everything to keep us happy together. The last thing he wanted was some stranger sweeping in to take his life! He'll be loosing his _wife._ He can't loose his children too. Besides, if you give up on dad, you'll _never_ see Aunt Natalie again."

"If you give up on mum," Alec countered, "You'll never see Uncle Dan _or_ Grandpa Fiske _or_ Aunt Nellie again. Plus, you'd never have to see Grandma Isabel or Grandpa Vikram ever again."

"He's our _father_ Alec," I said, "You can't just turn your back on him."

"She's our _mother_ Evelyn. You can't just turn your back on her," Alec mimicked before sighing, and reaching out to grab by hand and pull me down to the seat, "Look, we shouldn't argue about this now. They're only suspicions-"

"Which are likely true," I pointed out, but my voice was devoid of any anger.

"True," he agreed, glumly, "But we're still not sure of anything yet. Hell, we're not even sure that Nick likes mum to begin with! And even if it did turn out that he loves mum and mum loves him back, that doesn't mean she'll divorce dad. Don't forget, she loves dad too."

"So, should we continue with the search?" I asked, tentatively, "Or pretend that it never happened and go on with our lives?"

"Continue the search," my brother said without any hesitation, "If we don't then we'll always be asking ourselves 'what if?' or 'why did they?' I'd rather know and be disappointed than be caught totally unawares. Do you agree?"

"Yes," I answered, and the rest of the meal finished in silence. After a few more hours of mindless, pointless chatter, Alec finally chose to go to bed and I followed. But as I slipped under the covers, I kept staring up at the shadows on the ceiling. I had never been afraid of the dark but loosing Alec was something that definitely scared me.

And now it had almost become a very real possibility. I kept replaying the images in my mind when I voiced dad and Alec had wanted mum. I didn't take back my decision but in all truths, and I knew that at least partly, Alec felt this way too, I wanted everything to return back to normal. In that minute I don't think I've ever hated Nick more. He was ripping my family part and he didn't even know it. My parents didn't know it either but they might just be fighting for custody over us sooner or later. The question was, would we follow mum or dad or have joint custody?

I didn't know the answer. I don't think I wanted to.

Aiden Eventide POV

"We're in," I exclaimed, cutting through the final defenses, "Ready to read the files?"

"Yes," Evelyn answered, shortly, although her voice didn't seem so sure. I looked up at her, raising an eyebrow in question. She avoided my gaze, letting her amber eyes flit across the room, anywhere but at the computer screen. I continued looking at her, my face still etched in concern before Alec pointedly cleared his throat.

I turned my face back to the screen but even without a mirror I knew that I must have been flushing like mad. Still it could have been worse. Say, for example, that I was Alec. If I was than the pink blush in my face would have already been on its way to scarlet and impossible to miss.

Now I was just rambling.

"Okay so these files were written by Nick himself so I don't think it's entirely accurate," I began, "We can check it if you want but…"

"No, it's better this way," Alec said firmly, and as I looked up at him, I was shocked to see that his pale, jade green eyes looked to be a shocking shade of violet. But as I shook my head and watched him again I saw that it had reverted back to its original jade green hue. Great, I must be loosing my mind. Maybe mum was right; I really should try out for sports more and hang out in my dark room surrounded by glowing screens less.

"If that's what you want," I replied quietly and clicked the mouse, opening the screen files. I had a bad feeling about what I was going to see.

_June 14__th _

_I'm worried about her. She obviously has the same abilities as me and I don't think she can control it. Grace must have known as well, there's a restriction in her to keep her abilities bound. She must be exceedingly powerful to use the little that she did in class. Daniel shows the same abilities although his seems to focus more on the mind than on outside influence. They're both powerful but completely unaware and I can't tell them the truth. _

_My father never agreed with Grace Cahill and that's enough proof to know that she did this for a good reason. I considered telling her about the binding but dismissed that just as quickly. Amy would be furious at me but I'm willing to experience her full wrath to keep her safe from herself. If she ever went through the same thing I did, it would destroy her. Even now, I can't forgive myself for her the girl's death and I grew up with bloodshed. _

_Perhaps I am being a fool to keep so much from her, to play puppet master like the rest of her family but I love her too much to do anything else. I finally understand what her parents and Grace must have felt, guilt for keeping such a secret, worry for what her future will hold, and love, always love that makes you hold your tongue while at the same time wishing that she would find the truth out for herself. _

_June 17__th_

_I saw something disturbing at the city today. We were at the café when an explosion tore through the air and made us rush to the building. No civilian were injured thankfully but the damage was extensive and a painfully familiar mark was raised against the wall. Amy had no idea what the mark was and I couldn't tell her- not after the Council forgave my lineage and asked me to keep my past to myself. _

_She'll go to Ian's school soon and try to find an answer to her questions. I'm keeping quiet though. Everything seems peaceful, happy but I still feel restless. My power is moving in me, a tightly sprung coil and I get visions occasionally of a life that I know is not mine. I can't explain how I know this, or how I know that they're really but I do. This had never happened before and to be truly honest I fear what this might mean. Perhaps the arrival of another with my ability is making me do this. _

_Yet it is all just a suspicion and I wouldn't fool myself to say that I have no idea how to proceed. What Amy and I have is beyond everyone's expectations. I truly believe I love her and I know that everyone fears this. My family ties are not something I wish to presume on her, especially after everything she had gone through but I'm not always the perfectly selfless Madrigal everyone thinks of me. _

_If I was a better person, a stronger one than I would stop loving her. I would distance myself away from her and let her find someone who could really take care of her. But I'm not that strong and I need her, more than I've ever needed anyone else in my life. I'm not even sure I could love her properly, not with who my father was. But I know that no matter what, I want to protect her and see her smile, even if it's at someone else, I want her to be happy. _

_June 20__th_

_I was right. He was alive and he was going to hurt Amy. Perhaps not as much as I will tonight at the dance but he would kill her. I couldn't let that happen and I agreed to do what he asked. Maybe that isn't an excuse for what I had done but I have no other reason. Although I still wonder if it was more for me or for her. Amy would happily sacrifice herself for the Madrigals. I could never loose her like that. _

_I'll leave her with her whole life spread out before her and a broken heart. But she'll live, and Ian will mend her heart. If it was anyone else, I may have been angry that they would fall in love with her. But Ian is my friend and I knew that he wouldn't ever do anything to steal her away from me. And Amy loves him. She doesn't realize it yet but they would be perfect for each other and Ian would protect her. I hope she understands that and allows herself to return his love. I just want to know that she'll be happy, more than anything else. _

_June 23__rd_

_The fight is over. We won although it feels more like a defeat. Amy found out the truth, she was in a come for several days and I worried about her health. I sneaked in to see her at the beginning but I couldn't stay long. Brilliant or not, a room full of Madrigals is hard to get in and even harder to stay in. But when I was in there, I got a few flashed of her thoughts, almost eerily like mine even though they were from a different person's perspective. _

_She was gliding through the chilly air, high in the sky as the thermal wind slipped through her outstretched wings, playfully ruffling a few delicate, silver feathers. A delighted laugh bubbled through her lips as she looked down on the rolling hills of Ireland below her as her muscles contracted in time to her gliding. Grinning, she arced backwards up into the night air like a trapeze artist, and paused there for a minute longer, the ravishing beauty of the night illuminating her slender features as she held up her hands as though to catch one of the many stars above._

_She ran through the dark oak trees, her heart beating in excitement She was so close, she could almost taste the fear of her prey. Her sharp ears picked up the rustle of her target as the boy disturbed the quiet forest it was in. Honestly, what was the Ekat thinking when he thought that hiding in a forest would get him away from her? Speeding up, she soon found herself in a clearing located in the heart of a forest in India. The idiot had stopped running blindly and stood quivering in the base of a tree on the other end of the meadow. Smart boy knew it was going to die. Lifting up her familiar bow and arrows, she looked into the blue eyes filled with fear in front of her. She felt her lips curve upward into a half smile even as her stomach hurt in remembrance. The boy's eyes looked so much like Kayla's… but there was nothing to be done. She aimed her arrow at the heart of the boy and after a single heartbeat she shoots_

_A soft waltz plays over her as she twirls around, feeling the swish of the dress that was the height of Paris fashion at the time. She looked into the sharp eyes of the handsome young man twirling her around and bites her cheek to keep from laughing. Her partner- a very keen young Lucian that her father forced her to dance with- did not find out her plan. Soon there would be something far more amusing in the brightly lit ballroom as her plan was set to action. Spinning around, she smiled; her prank would definitely be the height of the season._

_She jumped hastily to the left as she dodged the hail of arrows aimed at her. Ducking behind a boulder she looked up to the strong barracks in front of her. Cursing the descendants of the brute, Tomas, under her breath she raises her slender hands and bluish purple flames dances out of her fingertips, raining death on her enemies below. The familiar power, her inheritance, inside her body tingles with anticipation as she readies herself for another attack. Damn those accursed Tomas! How in the name of Gideon and Olivia Cahill, did she end up here?_

_I feel more afraid than ever. What are these visions that Amy and I both receive? Why do I feel that this fight isn't over? I've decided to stay away from her. I've seen what my love brought her and I can't have her future tainted by sorrow anymore. The Madrigals have no doubt forgiven me by now but I'll be leaving tonight. I may never see her again but I know that is not the case. Whether for good or bad, happiness or sorrow, our lives have been entwined from the moment we met and I will see her again. _

_I only hope that I will be able to keep myself away from her for as long as possible. _

_October 18__th__ Ten years later_

_They got married today. She was so beautiful, so happy, that I felt no anger that it was Ian waiting at the alter instead of me. I stayed only long enough to see the vows being exchanged before I left although I have a sneaking expression that Daniel's girlfriend may have seen me. _

Evelyn was the last to finish reading it al and as I stared at her features I saw her face turn from one of shock to compassion to concern. Alec didn't show any such emotion but as I looked up at him, I saw that his face had gone stormy and his light, warm gaze had gone icy cold.

"Well," Evelyn finally said, and I was surprised to find her voice shaking, "You were right once again Alec." 

_**Please review. **_


	8. Chapter 8

Cahill's In The Future: Secrets of a Cahill

Chapter 8: Giving Up?

Evelyn Cahill POV

I hate it when my brother's right. Well I don't exactly like it when he's _wrong_ either, I just really, _really_ don't like it when he's right. Sadly Alec has a tendency to be correct quite often. It's like the universe just wants him to be accurate all the time. If my twin had said that the Earth was flat then they'd probably start throwing away all the world globes the next day.

Now though, I could care less that my brother was right. I was more concerned with the fact that he wasn't wrong. And if that was the case… his latest annoying prediction might just come true. Hope he's happy because I'm definitely not.

"This is your fault," I accused, flopping down on Aiden's messy bed, "It's always your fault!"

"What did I do?" Alec asked, mildly, not at all seeming shocked, "It's not like I wanted them to fall in love. You're messing up your new tunic thingy by the way." I sat up slightly to throw a glare in his direction as I smoothed my wrinkled clothes.

"It's not a tunic thingy," I said, indignantly, "It's a new wrap around long sleeved blouse!" Alec smiled, and reluctantly, I grinned back, understanding intuitively that he had done all that just to get me distracted from what I was thinking before. The smile faded just as quickly as it appeared though when I remembered that having my twin always there to guess my moods might not be such a regular occurrence in the upcoming future.

"What will we do Alec?" I whispered, hugging my knees to my chest, "_io non voglio litigare con te." _ My brother smiled at me as I slipped into Italian in my worried state. When we were younger and I was just learning languages, I would always slip into some other language when I didn't want to say something horrible in English. This only happened with Alec though and I had managed to get rid of the habit in the last few years. It must be slipping up again with my distress.

"I don't want to fight with you, either," Alec replied, before continuing, "We'll do nothing." The answer shocked me enough to make me actually look up at him. When I saw the smile on his face, I seriously considered the fact that my brother was mad. I had always entertained the notion of course but…

"Don't look at me like that, Ev," Alec said, sounding exasperated, "It's the most sensible thing to do right now. I just want to forget that Nick ever existed and go on with my life like usual. I want to be bored in class, chat with mates, and plan pranks on out not- so- innocent relatives as we wait for mum and dad to come home. I want to dream about being a Madrigal agent, study for our next covert ops, and whine about not being able to use the Russian nuclear laser. I want to be _normal."_

Okay our family has a weird idea of what's normal.

"We were never normal," I complained, "Even for a Cahill we were weird. And if we couldn't manage being average for the last thirteen years than we sure as hell won't now! Don't you want to learn more about Nick?"

When I looked at his face though, I knew my words would fall on deaf ears. My brother's face was closed off; perfectly symmetrical features hardened, jade green eyes cold, merciless and shuttered. A smile played on his lips, easy and open, but full of warning. He radiated tension, his slender form aloof.

Alec had been my role model before I even knew what a role model was but I only felt disappointment then. My quick, brilliant, perfect brother was too meek to continue with our search. He had his reasons I'm sure. He loved mum even more than me and seeing her closed past like this was probably like sprinkling salt on open wounds. But at that moment, I felt no sympathy for him, only simmering anger at the thought that my twin was choosing our mother over me.

But I didn't say what I thought inside, even though years later, I still had the feeling that my brother knew what I was thinking. He was my other half after all, but he stayed silent and I stayed silent and we never discussed my feeling of betrayal again. Instead, words dripped out of my mouth that I knew my brother would approve of.

It had always been like that. I would be the reliable, obedient, expectant little sister, never disagreeing with her big brother. Well that wasn't exactly a role I wanted to stop playing now, but that didn't mean I couldn't have my _own_ investigation.

"Fine. I'll stay away from him."

"Don't blow anything up," Alec said mock sternly, as though playing the position of responsible older brother, "I better not hear that the headmaster wanted another chat with his _favorite_ pupil again." I made myself look surprised.

"The headmaster wants to talk to you _again_, Al," I exclaimed, my voice disapproving, dodging out of the way of his swat, "That must be four times this month! I'm so proud of you!"

"You would be," Alec grumbled, before disappearing into the other side of the room where his friends were waiting. I grabbed my lunch bag and walked toward the large French doors that marked my table. The smells from the lunch trays around me made my nose wrinkle. Churchill Academy was an excellent institution by far compared to other districts but no school managed lunch food that was… oh, say _edible._

It did, on the other hand, make wonderful missile launchers for an ideal all out food fight. This, if memory serves correctly, was one of the reasons for my first little chat with our delightfully corrupted headmaster. Well, they can't really be called a chat in technical terms considering that he spends his entire time blustering while Alec and I take turns playing pinball on his cell. Mine was confiscated after a small… incident involving thirty- three packets of duct tape and the Vienna prime minister.

"Hey, new kid! Didn't you know this table was reserved!" an irritatingly loud voice broke across my mind as I looked up from my reverie. Across the room from me was the annoying form of Chelsea Simmons standing before a cowering girl in the other side of the lunch room. The girl was speaking in broken, overly loud English, a clear foreigner. A scene was starting to be made in the middle of the lunchroom and the girl was blushing to the tips of her hair roots. It was clearly her first day and the poor girl was being embarrassed to death.

I narrowed my eyes and quickly made my way over to the scene, pushing aside any students in front of me. My sky blue suede boots made small squeaks against the lineal floor as I walked up to Chelsea, the small blond girl not noticing me in her excitement of creating so much drama. She looked over her shoulder and I followed her gaze over the room to see the tall form of my twin standing by the soda machine, his bright jade green eyes disapproving.

"Enough Simmons," I called out, my loud voice cutting through the exited buzzing of the crowd as I made my way through to the front, "The girl clearly doesn't know any English and she's new."

"Buzz off, Cahill," Chelsea scowled, "We're just having some fun."

"I don't think she likes it that much. Do you?" I asked, jerking my finger over to the poor girl, "And last time I checked, this is a free country."

"Whatever," Chelsea replied, flipping her blond hair over her shoulder, "You're making way too big a deal out of this. What's she going to be anyway? Your newest charity case?" Her friends snickered and with a last laugh she turned away to head out the cafeteria, knowing the entire school's attention was focused only on her.

"Hey Simmons," I called after her back; "My brother doesn't go for phonies and jerks!"

After that I switched my attention back to the new girl. She had slightly French looking features and light brown hair so I decided to try French first proving my Madrigal ancestry. I may act, look, and live like a Lucian but I was a Madrigal at heart and helping people came naturally to me.

"Th-thank yoou," she stumbled over the words, her thick accent making the words nearly impossible to understand. I leaned in a hand to pick her up and spoke, keeping my voice low and reassuring as I smiled at her.

"_Bonjour, mon nom est Evelyn_," I said easily, "_Quel est votre nom?"_

_**Hello, my name is Evelyn. What is your name? **_

"_Mon nom est Janet," _she replied, looking relieved that I could speak French, _"__Je suis tellement désolé à ce sujet. Je ne savais pas!"_

_**My name is Janet. I am so sorry about this. I didn't know! **_

"_Son ok," _I reassured her, _"__Je dois m'excuser au nom Chelseas__**. **__Ne vous inquiétez pas tout le monde en Angleterre est un psycho." _

_**It's okay. I must apologize of Chelsea's behalf. Don't worry, not everyone in England is a psycho. **_

She laughed, her voice ringing with relief as I led the way to my table. The rest of the students had all sat down again, going back to their average, rich, dull lives now that the drama was over. Across the cafeteria, I caught Alec's eye and he nodded slightly at me before returning to his conversation with Aiden.

"_Souhaitez-vous asseoir avec moi et mes amis d'aujourd'hui?" _I asked politely, hoping the girl would say yes. I can protect a new kid for only so long after long. Luckily, she seemed delighted in making a new friend and nodded happily.

_**Would you like to sit with me and my friends today? **_

"_J'aimerais," _shereplied, "_Je vous remercie de l'offre, Evelyn." _

_**I would love to. Thank you for the offer, Evelyn. **_

_**It was my pleasure.**_

"_J'ai eu le plaisir," _I said, cheerfully as we finally reached the table and my friends made room for me and Janet. I opened my lunch bag and took out a small tray of sushi and rice cakes as chatter erupted in the table. My friends, long used to my odd twists and turns, made no complaint at our latest guest and just spoke to Janet as though she had been a long fixture at our table, many of them switching to French to put her at ease.

"What was it with that fight?" my longtime Madrigal friend, Adrianna asked aloud in French, "No offense Janet, but why was Chelsea picking on you?"

I looked across the table and gave a warning look to my dark haired friend. But she ignored me and looked squarely at Janet. Honestly, I love my friend but I can't stand her long time rivalry with my brother!

"It's obvious, isn't it?" another girl, Tania, an Ekat who I was kind of friends with piped up, "She was trying to impress Alec."

"So it's his fault," Adrianna said, looking smug.

"It's not my brother's fault!" I snapped my voice sharp and I quickly softened it as she winced, "Sorry Adri, but Alec hardly wanted this."

"It's still stupid though," Adrianna grumbled, "A girl acting so silly just to catch a boy's attention." I kept my mouth shut even though it was on the tip of my tongue to ask why she always acted like a jerk to my brother to get his attention. I wasn't stupid; the looks she gave my brother were far too soft for anger. Unfortunately though, while Adri's hatred may be faked, Alec's was entirely too real and I didn't want my best friends feeling to be hurt.

"Some boys are cute enough to be worth it," Leila shrugged uncomfortably as everyone's attention focused on her, "What? It's true."

"No it's not," I said astonished, as I looked around the table in search of aid. All I received though were nervous and slightly embarrassed looks back. I looked at my sure backer, Rebecca who had the least crushed on boys out of everyone here, and was disappointed to find myself met with a small shrug and an apologetic smile.

"Sorry Ev," Rebecca said weakly, "But you're brother's _really_ attractive."

"That's disgusting," I made a face and then mimed gagging, "I'm trying to eat!"

"It's true Evelyn," Tania said, giggling, "He really is hot. And so smart. And sweet. And handsome…" She sighed, and looked dreamily toward the table.

"Ugh," I said, wincing, "I think I'm going to be sick. None of you have ever seen Alec in the mornings and believe me, there is _nothing_ at all attractive there."

"Oh, I don't know," Leila answered, mischievously, "Does he go to bed without a shirt on?" I gaped at her, making no effort to disguise the look of complete horror on my face. We were discussing my brother without his shirt on? That was _beyond _so many levels of wrong.

"That brown haired boy next to him is quite handsome too," Janet said, thoughtfully in French, "Does he have a girlfriend?"

"Who?" I asked distracted, as I followed her gaze only to find a pair of crystal blue eyes looking back at me, "You can't mean _Aiden?"_ Said boy caught my gaze and raised a hand in a half wave that I returned before quickly turning back.

"Yes, do you know him?" Janet asked, sitting back down on the table, "Is he our boyfriend?" I choked on my virgin pina colada for an entirely different reason when she said that. Instantly my face began to burn but the blush receded by pure force of will as I turned to look at her.

"He's single," Tania answered, from my other said and I instantly felt the urge to kick her, "But you should definitely ask Evelyn to introduce you to him. They're great friends, right Ev?"

"Right," I said, to no one in particular as I stared down at my chopsticks as though they were the most fascinating things in the world, "I could introduce you."

I felt the burn of Adri's gaze on my head but refused to let myself look up. Out of all my friends, she was the only one I had blurted out my crush to and only she knew that I didn't like this. Being the best friend that she was, Adrianna quickly tried to interrupt.

"You probably shouldn't Janet," she warned, "I heard Aiden's already got a major crush on someone. You'll probably be rejected in what, five seconds?"

"Eventide's got a crush?" Rebecca asked, interested, "Since when?"

"For months now," I lied, trying to ignore the feelings of raging guilt in my stomach, "He didn't tell me who though."

"Okay then," Janet answered, looking disappointed but resigned as she returned to her meal.

"You know Evelyn, I'm totally jealous," Leila confided in me, "You get to know the most handsome boys in school and you totally don't appreciate that fact. Do you know what some people would do for a picture of Alec Cahill, going swimming?"

"I'll take a picture and email it to you the next time he goes swimming," I joked, nibbling on a rice cake, "When he just gets out of the pool and is still dripping with water." I meant it as a joke to lighten the conversation but Leila's eyes brightened.

"Really?" she asked excitedly, "Promise me?"

"Ooh, me too!" Tania added before I could get a word in edge wise, "I'd love a picture of Alec going swimming! Simmons would be so jealous!"

"And maybe one for me too?" Janet offered up quietly, in French, her light skin flushing.

"Oh, what the hell," Rebecca said, "I want one too." The only person who kept quiet was Adrianna although I could tell from the look on her face that she wanted one too even if she was too proud to ask for it. I groaned and placed my head on the table. Somehow I've ended up with the promise to send pictures of my bare-chested twin swimming to around half a dozen girls.

Alec had better go swimming soon.

I was walking across the manor grounds, my hands automatically emailing three pictures of Alec, one of him in the water, one of him coming out of the pool, and one of him drying his dark hair off with a blue towel to my friends. I had even included a copy for Adrianna when a noise made me look up. It was there at the clearing where first saw him.

Nick was tall and handsome undoubtedly with silver blonde hair that looked freshly washed and an easy smile. His clothes were simple and black, but hugged his muscles well and fitted his slender form perfectly. His eyes, alert and predatory, were in all ways beautiful, like two midnight blue liquid pools with startling specks of silver dotted across. When he saw me, a smile flitted across his face, one of such longing and regret that I had no doubt that he was seeing me and yet not seeing me at once, imagining someone in my place instead.

Could it have been my mother he imagined when he gave that heartbreaking smile?

"You're Nick," I breathed, looking at the man in wonder and fascination.

"I am," he answered, his smile bitter and mocking but warm all the same, "And you must be Evelyn Cahill. I have to say, you look nothing at all like your brother."

_**I hope you all like this latest chapter and review. Remember, I don't own the 39 Clues but as a fanfiction writer, I have all rights to mutilate the story to fit my own needs. Go figure. **_


	9. Chapter 9

Cahill's In The Future: Secrets of a Cahill

Chapter 9: Knowing Your Enemy

Evelyn Cahill POV

"That's none of your business," I snap, bristling as a look of shock flits across Nick's face. Funnily enough, the best way to completely tick me off is to tell me that Alec and I are not alike. We're twins for God's sake! Yes, I _know_ that for the most part we look nothing alike, we have totally different mannerisms, and even an idiot can tell we think differently, but I still hate it when someone _else_ tells me that.

Maybe it's because, despite the fact that Alec is my twin, ninety nine point nine percent of the people we meet can't believe that as whacky as me is related to someone as calm and collected as Al. My brother would argue differently, attempt to convince me otherwise but I can tell that's what people are thinking. Some parts of me even wonder if Alec thinks that too.

"I suppose it's not," he agreed, looking amused as though he'd just read my thoughts, "You're searching about me." It wasn't a question.

"How would you know what we're doing?" I demanded, feeling a chill of foreboding as he smiled at me. Could he have been spying on us?

"I wasn't spying on you," he spoke up, almost entirely reading my thoughts before he added, even more softly, "It's what Ian and Amy would have done." His voice was so sad, his eyes so dim that I didn't hesitate to do what I did next.

"You should… some in," I suggested awkwardly, fidgeting where I stood as Nick looked shocked. Whatever he was expecting well it definitely wasn't this. I had thrown him off, and oddly enough, I felt a little victorious at that. Being a Kabra however, I kept my surprise to myself and attempted a nonchalant tone.

I twisted on my step and headed toward the manor, not bothering to look back to see if he'd follow as I added over my shoulder, "Are you coming? My family's ancestral grounds are beautiful but it doesn't go far in the way of comfort. And a Cahill does _not_ sit on the floor."

I heard his laugh, rich and melodious, as he finally began to follow me. A small smile crept up my face as his soft footfalls came to match mine. It was a tremendous amount of luck that Alec wasn't home today; I'd never lead Nick home otherwise.

"You really are the daughter of Ian Kabra," he chuckled, matching my swift speed as the manor loomed up in front of us, "Only he had the ability to act so haughty and still manage to sound like the reasonable one."

"How do you know my parents?" I managed to say despite the lump that lodged itself in my throat. That was an eerily accurate description of my father and the familiar tone in his voice didn't exactly settle my frazzled nerves either. Nick passed me a look as though he was debating what he should or shouldn't say to me.

"We were close friends," he finally said before adding on conversationally, "Yo9u have a beautiful home."

His tone was respectful, impressed even, but he didn't sound awed like most first time visitors to the manor might. That indifferent tone of the wonderful place I called home irked me for some reason. I looked over the manor with a new eye. The marbled pillars, dark mahogany furniture, priceless antiques and beautiful oil paintings were normal for me but to a guest it inspired a little wonder at the very least.

This man however sounded like he meant it as a compliment but wasn't shocked by its overall beauty or elegance. It almost sounded like he'd_ been_ here before, strolled across the perfectly trimmed grass, admired the ancient Monet's, and sat in the dark leather couches in the parlor. Like this expensive ancestral home that was the epitome of wealth and class was someplace he was familiar with.

"I don't mean to be rude," Nick began shaking me up so I could look at him, only to find that he seemed nervous, "Do you think we can go to the western sunroom to talk? It's been a long time since I visited that room."

"You've been here before then?" I asked bluntly, not replying to his question as I filed the information away for later use. He let a fond smile appear on his face as he stepped in front of me and led the way to the sunroom.

"I told you," Nick said, cutting across the lawn, "I was close friends with your mum. I was here often, especially in the sunroom. We used to go there and do our homework after dinner. If I recall correctly, it had the most amazing sunsets and Mina spent more time trying to paint them than she did studying."

The western sunroom was separated from the main building; I noted uneasily, none of the staff would here me if I chose to scream. Al was doing God- knows- what with Aiden and he wouldn't remember to check on me until late at night, morning even if he decided to sleep over. Yet even with that news, I couldn't force myself to be very concerned when I reached the lightened room.

It was almost evening now, the sky lighted up in a dazzling display of scarlet and dusky gold. Nick stood against the completely paneled wall of glass that faced the horizon and raised a hand against the cool frosted surface. A myriad of emotions crossed his face, sadness, regret, longing for the fleeting, carefree happiness of his past.

I felt sympathy well up in me as I saw him, sympathy for him and anger for myself. For a minute there, I had stopped labeling him as an enemy; he was only Nick, a heartbroken man haunted by his tragic and bittersweet past.

Looking at the room, I could almost see the serious form of Aunt Mina, bending over her half finished canvas, a smudge of orange paint on her pale cheek. My uncle Adrian, listening absently to music from a slim white iPod as he gazed at the Romanian beauty. My aunt Melissa was there, silenced for once as my uncle Luke strummed his guitar, her blue eyes soft. Brianna with her beautiful raven curls made golden by the blazing sunset, discussing the latest Madrigal news with Mark.

My father, his amber eyes lingering on my mum's reddish gold curls as she bent over her paper, nibbling on her lip as she came across a particularly difficult question. A younger Nick, lighthearted and warm, standing against the illumination of the dying day, his chiseled face open. A grin spreading across his face as mum looked up from her essay to give him a wry, half smile. It was all so clear, so truly vivid that it took my breath away.

"When you were dating mum," I asked, blinking my eyes as the image vanished, "You knew dad liked her yet you weren't angry about it. You didn't chide your friend even though you knew he liked her. Why?"

Nick looked up and focused on me, the knowledge in his eyes a little unnerving. There are many people who give you the illusion that they can see into your very soul. It was then that I began to wonder if Nicholas Verlac could see if not into my soul than into my very mind.

"You are full of surprises Evelyn Cahill," he remarked and then continued, before I could demand that he explain his vague comment, "The first day I met your mother, I knew I would not be the only lover of her life. Call it an intuition of sorts. I also knew that despite that barrier, I wouldn't feel any less love for her. Ian was a loyal friend. He knew he loved her but he made no move when I was dating her. Out of all the people I had to loose to, I'm glad it's your father. He makes her happy."

"So you think that you couldn't make her happy?" I asked, my throat drying quickly. He looked at me, his midnight eyes bright. It was only then that I realized what this conversation was costing him. Madrigal traitor or not, I couldn't imagine that discussing the love of his live with his rival's daughter could not be easy.

"On the contrary," Nick said his voice sharp with anger, "I knew very well that I could make her happy. Amy and I were perfect for each other. If loving me hadn't put her in danger, I'd never have left. I only wanted to keep her safe."

"You said that before," I replied, my head feeling dizzy as I clarified, "In the Madrigal archives, you said you were endangering her by loving her. What does that mean?"

"Ah, the archives," Nick said ruefully, an almost apologetic grin on his face, "I wanted someone to find those accounts although it would have been next to impossible to penetrate the barrier. Very impressive Evelyn."

"It wasn't me," I felt myself replying, "It was Aiden. He's a friend of mine." Nick cocked his head to the side and looked at me, his dark eyes sparking with a knowing glint.

"Someone whom you'd want as more than a friend I think," Nick commented, his smile growing wider as I blushed, "Still, it's a good choice. Looks like he inherited his father's talent with tech. Amy and Melissa will be happy; they always wanted to be sisters."

'It's just a crush," I said quickly, not liking the familiar tone he took with my family, "It's not like we're getting married." _No matter how much I hope, _I added silently.

If I was anyone other than a Cahill, I'd feel more disturbed about the fact that I was discussing my (currently nonexistent) love life with my mum's (supposedly) dead, ex (kind of) boyfriend. Sadly I am a Cahill (which roughly translates to I'm INSANE) and I'm not all that disturbed by this turn of events.

"How are the others?" Nick asked, looking curious, "Have Mina and Adrian finally figured out that they were made for each other? Are Brianna and Mark married now? How is sweet little Melissa handling motherhood?"

"Aunt Mina is a famous painter," I reported, "She lives in Romania now with Uncle Adrian. They've been married for seven years now and have a little four year old son named Damon. Aunt Brianna's a fashion writer in Paris but she works in the Madrigal sector in London part time and Uncle Mark and she broke up a couple of years ago. Aunt Melissa lives in England actually, a couple of miles from here." He nodded in understanding.

"Damon," he said thoughtfully, "Demon. Figures Mina would name her little devil that. I'm just surprised Adrian let her."

"After nine hours of labor, I don't think he wanted to disagree with her," I said tactfully. Nick grinned in genuine amusement.

"Translation," he corrected, "He didn't have the nerve to argue with an already short tempered Mina after she was pissed off and ready to kill him. And people say that Madrigals have no self-preservation." That brought a smile out of me.

"That's true," I admitted, trying not to laugh at Uncle Adrian's expense before I sobered, "Aunt Melissa still remembers you actually. She sounds like she misses you and I think the others do too. I read the Madrigal archives. You've been pardoned so why don't you see your old friends? Why do you skulk around our manor grounds when all you have to do is ring the doorbell and know you'll be welcomed with open arms?"

"You're a smart girl Evelyn," Nick said, smiling sadly, "And you're right. I could have called them and received a warm welcome. I could have been accepted by my branch; forgiven for my past actions. But I was shackled. Shackled by chains of my own making; chains that would spell my undoing. I wanted my friends to be happy for as long as possible and the only way to do that was to stop being their friend. So I left. I left for several years and only visited now."

"What made you come back now then?" I asked, fascinated by his story, "What could scare you enough to leave your closest friends for over a decade?"

He looked at me and answered his voice so emotionless, so blunt that I knew at once he was speaking the truth, "Your biggest nightmare."

"My biggest nightmare is wearing plaid and stripes together," I joked, trying to make light of the conversation, "And that's hardly an answer although I'll give you bonus points for the gloom and doom tone. The menacing words are good too."

"Your worst fear isn't a bad fashion choice," Nick said, smiling sadly, the silver flecks in his eyes startlingly bright, "It's loosing your twin."

It felt like an icy knife was being plunged into my heart as I stared at him, my heart racing wildly. I didn't move but the terror in my amber eyes would be more than enough information on how I felt. How could someone I met just today know so much about me?

"What do you mean?" I asked, my voice coming out raspy as I clenched my hands, the nails digging into the soft flesh of my palm, "Is Alec in trouble?"

"In a way, we're all in trouble," Nick said, delicately, "I have a feeling that something will happen soon and the Madrigals will be severely effected. I've come here, hoping to protect your family. Hoping to protect Amy."

"This enemy… did you fight them before in the past?" I asked, changing tactics, "Who were they? Is it your father?"

"You know more that you reveal," Nick mused, looking at me, "You're a quick judge of character Evelyn. Tell me… who do you think I am?"

"I think… you're a friend," I said hesitantly, looking up at him, "My brother doesn't believe me; he wants me to stay away. I think you're dangerous and I know you've got a hidden agenda and that you won't tell me about it but I also think that you meant it when you said you loved my mum. I think you're loyal to your friends; that's why you came back."

"You're more correct than you'd think," Nick said, leaning against the wall before he sighed, "A warning than Evelyn. This enemy isn't something I can tell you now. It's put of my hands but you and your brother might be able to find more about it. I need you to convince your brother to start searching again. You don't have to trust me but you should be prepared."

"So, that's it?" I asked bitterly, "Come in and completely destroy our lives and all you'll give us is a vague warning? What can we get from that?"

"You have to understand," he pleaded, "It's not as easy as you think. Talk to your mum if you want. But I can't tell you the truth; it would scar you for life."

"Then who can?" I challenged, "My parents haven't said anything to us at all. Aunt Melissa refuses to do so and I know all my other relatives would hide it from me. Would you rather I walk into danger blind or have my innocence damaged?"

"A hint then," Nick said, looking up at the horizon, "Search the Coliseum. You'll find part of your answers there. And Evelyn… don't be hasty." He turned to walk away, leaving me standing there to stare at his walking back.

"So you're just leaving then?" I shouted, "I thought you were going to help us! What type of a friend are you then! You're a coward Nick!"

He didn't even turn around.

_**Please remember to review. **_


	10. Chapter 10

Cahill's In The Future: Secrets of a Cahill

Chapter 10: Open Feelings

"So when Evelyn comes to you for help," Alec explained, "I want you to agree on the condition that she must-"

"Wait," Aiden interrupted, looking unsure, "How do you know Evelyn will come to me for help? Why would she even need my help? I thought you two decided on not following Nick's trail anymore because of the danger."

"No," Alec said, sighing, "_I _decided not to follow Nicholas's trail anymore because of the danger. Evelyn I think rather disagrees with me. For the first time, she's continuing a dangerous endeavor alone. And I know because she's my twin."

The blond boy in front of him blinked, clearly not understanding a world in which the twins would ever do anything exiting, _alone. _Alec couldn't blame him. He himself had trouble believing that Evelyn was undertaking such a foolish venture without him.

"My sister isn't stupid," Alec continued, trying to dismiss the feelings of betrayal Evelyn's decision had caused, "She'd run headfirst into a sea of bullets but she'd never do it without some form of protection. Obviously she won't come to me- "Aiden wondered if he saw a slight wince at that moment- "So you'll be her best bet."

"I see," Aiden said slowly, "But will you really let her keep this up. I mean… she could get hurt…" The tall dark-haired boy facing him gave a mirthless smile.

"Believe me Aid, I love her as much as you do," Alec said, ignoring the other boy's sudden stuttering, "She's my only sister. But I don't own her. I'm walking a very tight rope here. On one hand, this is stupid and impulsive but Evelyn does have a point, we need to get to the bottom of this mess and I should support my sister in her- admittedly idiotic- plans. On the other hand, this idea could kill her, and despite my mother being a Madrigal, she's not all that understanding if you break her rules."

"So you're going to do nothing?" Aiden asked incredulously, "You'll just stand by while Evelyn walks headfirst into danger?"

"Don't be silly," Alec said dismissively, "I'm going to be hiding when she comes for you and after I hear just how desperate her plan is; I'll decide my next course of action. Rest assured, whatever mad plan Evelyn cooks up, I'll help her with it."

"Oh, good," Aiden replied, looking relieved, "So when will Evelyn come to me for help?"

"If I know my sister," Alec began, "And I do than she'll be here in a couple of hours when she thinks I'll have gone home. She'll probably leave me a ridiculous note about spending the night with Adrianna or Rebecca or Tania or any one of her friends."

"Than we have some time then," Aiden said, lying against the dark blue spread of his blanket, his light blue eyes darkening a shade in a worry.

"We do," Alec agreed, a small smile crossing the usually stoic teen's face. To Alec this was the equivalent of suddenly bursting out into loud, prolonged madmen type laughter so you can imagine that Aiden, who had known him since they were both toddlers, would feel worried.

"Now," the teen continued, a disturbingly impish look in his jade green eyes, "Let's discuss this crush you have on my little sister…"

Suffice to say, Aiden's face turned into an interesting multihued palette of reds until a certain teen with reddish gold hair stopped by for a visit. Alec was enjoying himself immensely.

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"Hello Aunt Melissa, is Aiden home?" Evelyn asked politely, placing her bag on the floor. Her aunt looked up from her work, the small diamond earrings she was wearing sparkling against her light blond hair as she smiled.

"He's in his room," Melissa replied, placing a dark pen on the desk as she used a tissue to wipe off her ink stained fingers, "Feel free to go in."

"Thanks," Evelyn said, heading toward the door before she paused and looked back, "What are you doing now?"

"Hmm," Aunt Mel said distractedly as she looked over the papers again, "They're just blueprints Evelyn. The United Nations decided to overthrow the Guatemalan dictator so the Madrigals need the floor plan of his summer home in Prague."

"Really?" Evelyn asked, interested, "Do you have any ideas on how to get in?"

"Just bouncing around a couple of ideas now," her aunt said, smiling at her, "The best mode would be secrecy obviously. A quick assassination that could be arranged as an accident…"

"Why not use a stealth submarine?" Evelyn suggested, "One of those miniature marine research subs that diver's use? It's expensive but it might work."

"That's a possibility," Melissa agreed, "But a water attack would be too conspicuous. Thank you for the suggestion though."

Evelyn nodded and made her way to the front door, her stomach fluttering in anticipation as she considered her own latest planned heist. It wouldn't work though if Aiden didn't help. It was bad enough that she didn't have Alec as backup but if Aiden couldn't help either than the whole plan would be disastrous…

"Aidan," Evelyn called out, letting his name roll off her tongue with long familiar ease, "Can I come in Aid?" Said boy looked up from where he was sitting on his bed, a thick book in his hands, and smiled.

"Sure," he agreed, swinging his legs off the dark coverlet, "Good to see you, Ev."

She nodded, her mouth becoming dry as she just noted that for the first time in several weeks, they were in a room alone together. Without Alec. Her cheeks suddenly darkened as she took in his tousled chestnut brown hair and bright blue eyes. In her head, she thanked whatever gods that allowed her to inherit her father's cinnamon colored skin and made it next to impossible to know if she was blushing. In an attempt to stop her mortification, she gestured toward the thick book Aiden held in his hands.

"A computer manual Aid?" she teased, perching on the side of the bed. Aiden just smiled sheepishly and placed the book on his desk before sitting down next to her.

"So why am I lucky enough to have the Evelyn Cahill visiting my lowly self?" he asked, grinning at her, his eyes brightening.

"I kind of need your help," Evelyn admitted, trying not to focus on how close he was toward her. If she just reached out a hand…

"With what?" Aiden asked, without preamble, his light blue eyes flitting toward the closet door behind which a certain dark haired teen was hiding, although Evelyn didn't know.

Said teen was watching this with a mixture of amusement and interest. Almost as an after thought, he took out his Palm pad and made a quick text to Kieran.

_**Bet another hundred bucks that A and E will kiss today. –Alec**_

They were in the middle of a possible position that would result in success or failures of a life or death situation but hey, why give up a very good money making opportunity?

"I want to learn more about Nick," Evelyn said, avoiding Aiden's eyes as she stared at her own intertwined hands squeezed tightly. It was out; now she would find out if Aiden would help her even if it meant going against one of his best friends.

"Even though Alec didn't want to?" the question was expected, welcomed even because Evelyn herself had trouble answering this. So she couldn't explain to herself why she reacted the way she did.

"I don't need Alec's permission," she snapped, amber eyes lighting up in anger, "He's my brother, not my keeper, not my dad, and _not_ my leader. I can do whatever I wish!"

He raised his hands in a gesture of obvious surrender but it was like a dam, once she started, Evelyn couldn't stop. Her anger, her fear, her loneliness, so unfamiliar and so unwanted made her burst out at the poor blue eyed boy unfortunate enough to be with her.

"Just because everyone says Alec is the better one doesn't mean it's true! I don't need him!" Evelyn railed, her voice cracking on the last word as she blinked back the frustrating tears that suddenly came into her eyes, "I don't! I can do everything he can- I- I can do it better!"

"Okay, okay Evelyn, I believe you!" Aiden yelped, jumping up to his feet as he tried to calm the distressed girl, "Calm down, Ev!"

She stopped screaming but her eyes were still filled with tears and almost apologetically they ran down the tall panes of her face, making the girl curl up on herself in Aiden's bed. Alec, who had been sitting there, just paused quietly wondering why he suddenly felt his heart squeeze with guilt. No, he understood that feeling but why the urge to jump up from his hiding pot and run out to comfort her? An urge so strong it nearly over ruled his reason.

But the key word in every Cahill's dictionary was this: nearly. Not quite to the point where his mind was controlled by his heart. Frowning as he listened to the silent tears, Alec had to wonder why his reactions were like this. True, twins were known to share a bond but the one between him and Evelyn was so strong, that it seemed almost as if they really were one half of the other.

They were mirror opposites but if Alec closed his eyes, her face would swim up behind his eyelids as easily recognizable as if she had been right in front of him. He could guess any of her reactions, before she herself would think to do so. If she was worried or tense or happy or angry, he would immediately pick up on it as though they were tied by an emotional cord. Sometimes her desires were even more apparent to him than his own.

He had always chalked this up to being twins of course; what else could it be? But were all ordinary twin bonds so… intense? Was it normal for him to have dreams, almost premonitions of her? When she told him that she wouldn't follow Nick, he had known almost instinctively that she was lying. When he had come here to Aiden, he was struck by how she felt equally anxious and exhilarated though her face showed nothing.

Sometimes Alec doubted that they were each one half of the other. Sometimes he thought that they actually _were_ the other.

Dismissing the crazy thoughts from his head, Alec returned his attention to the matter at hand. Evelyn had stopped crying, but there were probably still fresh tear tracks staining her face, making Alec feel a tug of guilt in his stomach. There was a creek of bed springs, so Aiden must have sat down next to her, putting a hand on her shoulder as a gesture of comfort.

"You miss Alec, don't you?" he asked softly. It was hardly a question so Evelyn didn't bother to answer it. Instead she lifted her face and smiled mirthlessly.

"It's stupid, I know," Evelyn said, rather calmly for someone who had just all but broken down in a guy's bedroom, "First time Alec decides not to help me every step of the way and I loose it and decide to bawl like a baby."

"It's hardly pathetic," Aiden argued, "Alec has a way of… relaxing people… and scaring them at the same time. Like you know he's strong enough that he'll make everything alright."

"Unless he's the one you're supposed to be protected from," Evelyn added and they both laughed much to the teen's indignation. He did not scare people!

Well not _that_ much anyway.

"Listen," Aiden said, suddenly becoming serious as he avoided Evelyn's amber gaze, "I think you should stop… whatever it is you're planning to do."

"Why?" Evelyn demanded, standing up and glaring at him defensively, "Just what are you saying? I can take care of myself Aiden."

"I know," he muttered, still not looking directly at her, "I just don't think it's a good idea. You could get hurt Evelyn."

"So?" the girl asked, her tone icy "Is this some stupid masculinity thing, or what? Just because I'm a girl doesn't mean I can't defend myself. Most men won't even be able to-"

"For Madeline's sake, Evelyn it's not about masculinity!" Aiden finally interrupted, before calming down and looking nervous, "I just don't want you to get hurt…"

"How is it any of your business whether or not I get hurt?" Evelyn insisted, making a hidden Alec hastily try to stifle some laughter. Oh, this was getting good.

"Because I care about you, you idiot!" Aiden shouted, throwing his hands up in the air, "God Evelyn, can you be any thicker? I've liked you for almost a year now and I don't want you to get hurt and you can't notice any of it!"

By now, the young Madrigal had begun to notice what he just blurted out and blushed a scarlet that would rival even Alec when he was epically embarrassed. Evelyn too seemed to have gotten the gist of the conversation if you noted her reddening face and averted eyes.

"So," Aiden continued, much quieter now, "That's why I think you shouldn't continue with your probably insane plan." The insult seemed to have shaken Evelyn out of whatever stupor that held her, because she stood up to glare at him… again.

"My plans are not crazy," she declared, standing up from the bed and crossing her arms, "They're… risky." Aiden snorted, a rather dangerous move considering the angry girl with more that one black belt standing in front of him.

A word to the wise: the Bible wasn't lying when it said, "_A hell hath no fury like a woman's scorn." _That goes double if the woman's last name was Cahill.

"Risky to the point of suicide," he retorted, "I'm surprised you're even in one piece now."

"Oh but you'd like that wouldn't you, if I got hurt?" Evelyn asked, scowling at him.

"Why would I be happy if you're hurt when I love you?" Aiden replied, scowling back at her. Alec wondered if they'd notice if he took pictures of all this before deciding that they probably wouldn't if he left the flash off.

"Because your love is irrational," Evelyn replied, "You're disillusioning yourself."

"How would you know?" Aiden challenged, "You've never been in love."

"I have so!" Evelyn snapped, "I'll have you know I've liked you months before you liked me!"

"No, _I _liked _you_ before you liked me!" Aiden spat. Amazing, Alec couldn't help but think, they're not even dating yet and already they're having their first fight.

"You couldn't because _I_ liked _you,_" Evelyn began before Aiden cut her off.

"Wait, you like me?" Aiden asked, totally thrown off. Evelyn huffed and crossed her hands again before she answered.

"No duh, Sherlock," Evelyn said, "Considering I've said it for like five times in the last _minute_-"

"No," Aiden interrupted, reddening, "That is, I like you too. A lot."

"You do?" Evelyn asked her voice suddenly small. A large grin bloomed in Aiden's face as he looked at her. Alec suddenly had the urge to plug his ears.

"Of course I like you Ev," Aiden exclaimed, looking surprised that she doubted him, "I mean you're so pretty and brave and you always fight for what you believe in-"

"But you're so smart," Evelyn blurted, "And you have so much confidence in yourself! You could probably have any girl you want in school-"

"But the girl I wanted was you," Aiden recounted, "And you're so intimidating I could never ask you to go on a date with me-"

"Me, intimidating?" Evelyn asked, laughing in disbelief, "Have you ever seen yourself Aid? You always seem to know what's going on and you know the answer to everything-"

"Not if you would like me or not," Aiden argued, making Alec secretly roll his eyes. Figures they'd jump straight to fighting again. Hell with pictures, he was taking a video of this!

"Well isn't it obvious that I like you?" Evelyn answered, rolling her eyes, "I blush nearly every time you look at me, I'm always looking for an excuse to be with you, Alec teases me _endlessly_ about it-"

"Teases you?" Aiden replied, snorting, "Please your brother makes it his _mission_ in life to humiliate me about whether or not I'll finally confess to you-"

"Well you should be happy now then, shouldn't you?" was Evelyn's shouted reply, "Now that you_ finally _confessed to me!" Aiden blinked.

Alec couldn't help but wonder what Aunt Melissa in the next room was thinking about all this. Knowing his aunt, she would probably just leave it as it is and pretend it never happened. Yeah, right.

"Does," he began hesitantly, "Does that mean we're together than?"

That made Evelyn pause as she recalled what she had just said. Given her last response, Aiden probably had no reason to expect her to glare at him.

"Oh, typical Aiden," Evelyn fumed, "Just naturally expect that we're together! You're just like all boys; you don't even bother to ask the girl in the relationship! _No_, you want us to date so naturally we should be dating!"

"So, will you be my girlfriend then?" Aiden asked, smiling as he saw Evelyn's easy switch of emotions; as flighty as a summer tempest.

"Oh Aiden, you're _such_ an idiot," Evelyn sighed affectionately before leaning up and pressing her lips against his.

For two people who were arguing just five seconds ago, Alec thought wryly, they seem to make up rather quickly. They were so deep into their kiss, one Alec was rather gleefully and rather disgustedly filming, that they didn't even notice him step out of the closet, camera phone in hand.

Now, in any other family, video taping your sister getting her first kiss is probably not the most moralistic thing you could possibly do. But, Alec reasoned, a Cahill rarely gets embarrassed and in the few situations in which they do, it's the job, no the _duty _of every other Cahill to get video footage of it.

Besides he would need proof of their kiss to get Kieran to fork over the hundred bucks.

Aiden's arms were already around her waist, the tip of her long thick hair just brushing his tanned forearms. Her slender arms were also around his neck, one entwined around his brown hair as they kissed. For several moments they didn't notice Alec, at least not until he decided to speak.

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"You know a Cahill sees a lot of things in life but seeing his best mate and twin sister making out is just going a little _too_ far," Alec's tone was severe but the small smile on his face tempered the blow as both teens jumped apart, blushing bright scarlet.

Evelyn had to force herself not to groan out loud. When she pictured her first kiss with Aiden, not saying that she pictured kissing Aiden or anything, but it certainly never had her older brother watching them in even the wildest of her fantasies.

"Alec," Evelyn said, making her voice sarcastic despite her embarrassment, "Excellent timing dear brother. If you could just leave for another ten minutes, I'd appreciate it."

"Ah, hey mate," Aiden muttered, his face still bright red, "Good to… ah, see you?"

"Somehow I doubt it," Alec grinned, coming up and clapping him on the shoulder, "Good for you mate, you finally got her then!"

"Ah, yeah," Aiden replied, clearing his throat. Privately he wondered if all congratulations carried this much of a hidden threat in them.

"You do know of course that my father's not going to be in Morocco indefinitely," Alec smirked, "Especially when he hears that his little girl just got a new boyfriend."

Aiden's face, which a second ago could be described as tomato red in the best of descriptions, suddenly turned chalky white. The idea of meeting face to face with a beyond angry Lucian father, particularly one whose family was known to be especially… fond of poisons could do that to you.

"Oh shut up, Al," Evelyn scolded her brother, "Daddy trusts Aiden. He'll be happy."

"Daddy used to trust Aiden," Alec corrected, still smirking, "Now that Aiden's dating his precious baby girl… he'll be _thrilled_. Want to come over for dinner Aiden? We're having my- daughter's- dead- boyfriend with a side of potatoes."

"Don't scare him Alec," his sister, said in exasperation, "Why are you here anyway?"

"Isn't visiting my dear sister and meeting her new boyfriend enough?" Alec asked, face perfectly innocent. A loud "Ouch!" was heard a second later when Evelyn hit him.

"Okay, okay," Alec muttered, rubbing his abused head, "I'm here to help you with your latest Nicholas Verlac scheme."

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_**I want to thank everyone for all the reviews (I loved them all), especially whoever wrote Such a Pretty Idea. **_

_**Okay first, you scare me! I'm both flattered and intimidated that you'd take so long to write me such a long, detailed and let's face it critical review. I'll get rid of the whole POV's but centered writing sticks. Also my characters are not Mary Sues, they have faults, and it's just a little less obvious than with other characters. But I understand what you mean and I'll try to make them seem less… god-like?**_

_**And as for my grammar, I'm thirteen! My greatest ambition is to pass my Integrated Algebra Regents without flunking, so forgive me if I don't take much of my writing seriously. I'm still a bit new to fanfiction in general. **_


	11. Chapter 11

Cahill's In The Future: Secrets of a Cahill

Chapter 11: Top Ten Ways Not To Plan a Heist

The minute Alec finished the sentence; it was as though the temperature in the room had dropped almost ten degrees. Evelyn's face, formerly a scowl, smoothed into a cold mask as she regarded her older twin.

"He's not as evil as you think Al," she said, quietly, leaning against the wall.

"He's not as nice as you seem to believe either Evelyn," he retorted harshly, running a hand through his dark hair in frustration, "Why do you trust him?"

"Because I actually bothered to get to know him," Evelyn answered, her tone softening, "Why won't you give him a chance? Why do you always hold everyone at an arm's length?" Her brother stiffened, jade eyes darkening.

"I don't-"he began, angrily before Aiden interrupted.

"Actually mate, you do," he said and paused, before saying slowly, "You don't have many friends Al and those that you do; you're not very close to. Most of the times it's like you want to be alone, even with me or Evelyn around."

"That's not true," Alec protested, "I hang out with both of you and Evelyn especially…"

"But it's like your in another world when you talk to us," Evelyn said, smiling sadly, "You have your own little universe in your head. It's always like you're away from us; that only part of your attention is focused on your friends if at all."

"I don't," Alec repeated, but it sounded hollow even to his own ears, "Do I?" He looked at his sister, helplessly for confirmation.

"You're not exactly all that social, Al," she said weakly, smiling, "You don't like change, you don't like surprises, and you loathe anyone new. You remind me of someone else actually."

"Who?" Alec asked, looking irritated, "Just who do I remind you of?"

"Nick," she said simply, "You both have that abstracted air around. Mum too now that I think about it. Haven't you ever noticed how distracted she seems?"

"Mum's one of the most focused people I know," Alec said, folding his arms.

"Yeah, but she always seems to be somewhere… else," Evelyn shrugged, "Like she's having a conversation within her head. You do too."

Alec was just about to protest again when he quieted, feeling helpless. It's not like what she was saying wasn't true. He did prefer his company to anyone else's even Evelyn. If Aiden wasn't an old family friend, he had no doubt that he would treat him just like all his other friends and by that with as little interaction as politely possible. At times, he even resented the world, forcing him to go beyond himself and mingle in social situations with people he often found dim witted and slow.

"That's not what we should be focusing on now," Aiden interrupted, shifting the focus from his uncomfortable best friend, "We should be making a plan." He loved Evelyn, he really did but sometimes she was pushing Alec a little too hard.

"So what do you want to do then?" Alec asked, grateful to turn the conversation to something else, "What's your crazy idea this time?" His sister shot him a look conveying in no uncertain terms that she didn't appreciate having her plans though of in a less than respectable manner.

"Back to my original plan," Evelyn declared, "We are going to break into the manor!"

"Why would we break into the manor," Alec said slowly as though speaking to a child, "If we live there?" Her sister shot him a winning smile.

"You should have waited for me to finish," she chided, "We're going to have to break into a particular part of the manor. More specifically, we have to break into the Coliseum."

"I'm sorry?" Aiden asked, hoping he'd heard it wrong, "Did you just say Coliseum? As in _the_ Coliseum? The same Coliseum the Madrigal's own and incidentally have equipped with all manners of dangerous and most likely lethal booby traps? _That _Coliseum?"

"The one and only," Evelyn said cheerfully, looking rather smug for someone who decided to rob her own branch's storage hold.

"That's it," Aiden said, shaking his head, "This time you've really gone around the bend Ev. And I'm saying this by Cahill standards."

"Actually," Alec said suddenly, "It's perfect. Where better to hide top secret madrigal branch information then where it's best protected and most obvious? Under the Cahill manor, of course! The family defenses will keep it safe and nobody would want to mess with an angry Madrigal agent."

"So do you actually mean we're going to break in?" Aiden asked, looking incredulous.

"Yep," Alec said happily, "And I already have an idea on what we should do."

As Alec launched into his already detailed explanation- thank god, because she had no idea beyond 'break into the Coliseum'- Evelyn smiled. It was so great to have her twin back. She had no idea how she would be able to deal with this huge mess without Al's cool, logical thinking. He may not have been thrilled by all this, she knew without a shred of doubt that they'd have a serious talk about all this later, but he was helping her and he'd stay by her side. And really, when you think about it; that was all she needed.

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"Who would be stupid enough to fall for that?" Aiden demanded.

"If I remember correctly," Evelyn shot back, "You were stupid enough to fall for it!"

"Clearly, you can't remember then!" Aiden snapped. Evelyn was just about to open her mouth for another retort when Alec started banging his head on the table.

Why did Fate hate him? Really, what did he do in a past life? It was all very good and well that Evelyn and Aiden were together but really, did they have to argue like that? It was practically the same thing they did before they started going out approximately thirty six minutes ago. Well unless you count the make out session; that was clearly new.

They were like Uncle Adrian and Aunt Mina before Damon was born. Does this mean he'd have to wait until he was an uncle for his best friend and twin sister to mature? God he'd hope not, he only had a relative amount of sanity after all. Still, it was next to impossible to do anything with those two bickering like an old married couple.

"Enough!" Alec yelped, his hand shooting up to cradle his throbbing head, "Stop arguing! Here's the plan: I'll make the plans and you two will learn about them a few hours before they go into action. Until then, you will walk out of this room _quietly_, and _not_ bother me. _Understand?" _

From the look on his near demented face, it was clear to Aiden and Evelyn that they should understand. And they should also walk out the room. Very quietly. Despite the fact that Alec was basically kicking them out of Aiden's own room.

"Ah," Alec sighed, happily, "Peace at last." It was then that his cell decided to very fittingly ring.

"Alec Cahill speaking," Al said crossly into the phone, "Who is it?"

"Good to hear from you too, son," the voice of a very clear, very amused Amy Cahill rang through the cell, "What are you doing now?"

"Damn," Alec said, letting out a string of fairly colorful Norwegian curses. Why did Fate love to screw him?

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Amy Cahill felt a little anxious as she listened to the expletives coming out of her eldest child's mouth. It took a lot to make Alec use profanity; he must have been really frustrated.

"Are you okay, sweetie?" she asked, her voice concerned and a little sharp. It was the full proof tone that all mothers used when they wanted their kid to tell the truth. It was the 'I- know- exactly- what- you've- done- and – if –you- don't- come- clean- you're- dead' tone.

She could feel Alec hesitating on the phone and leaned against the comfy hotel bed she was currently occupying as she listened to him breathe. Across half of the world, Alec found himself in quite a dilemma.

Alexander Cahill may have done many things, a few of them possibly able to send him to jail for life had they come to light, but he never lied outright to his parents. It was just that… they were _his_ parents, the famous pairing of Lucian Ian Kabra and Madrigal Amy Cahill, a couple that many people believed improbable if not downright impossible. You just don't lie to them, simple as that.

"I'm trying to stage heist," he admitted, not quite indulging all the details but not lying either, "I don't think you'll be happy about what I'm doing mum."

"I'd be proud of you no matter what you were doing," Amy disagreed, "Well maybe except for listening to Jonah's terrible rap music."

"I'm not kidding mum," Alec said quietly, "I'm in way over my head. I'm not sure I can deal with it."

"You're a Cahill," Amy replied, simply, "You can deal with it. Tell me first: is it illegal?"

"Not quite," Alec answered.

"And do you think it needs to be done?" Amy asked.

"Yes," Alec said, "Definitely."

"Than you should do it," Amy replied softly, "If it's getting to be too much than you would know when to stop. I trust your instincts on this. If it's important than go for it."

"Even if I'm breaking the rules?" Alec teased, with a smile on his face. Now Amy snorted.

"Al, between your father and me, if you _didn't_ break a rule, _than_ I'd be very worried," Amy informed him and then switched the topic to something lighter, "So, I'm in the Caribbean now. Anything you want in particular?"

"No thanks," Alec answered, smiling, "I don't think Evelyn needs anything either."

"Speaking of Evelyn," his mother said, "Where is she?"

"Probably making out with her new boyfriend," Alec snickered, "She left with Aiden a few minutes ago?"

"Aiden?" Amy questioned gleefully, "They got together? Yes! Your father owes me fifty bucks."

"Are you coming soon, then?" Alec asked, half hoping she would say yes, half dreading the answer no.

"Sorry Al," she said, sympathetically, "I have to go to Athens tonight. I'll be coming back home in three days."

This means, Alec thought with dread that they'd have to stage the break in tomorrow.

"Okay mum," he said softly, "Love you."

"Love you too," Amy answered from across the world, silently wondering at the determined and resigned tone in her son's voice. A tone that reminded her of Ian when he was about to do something he particularly disliked but knew was essential. With a slight smile on her face, she hung up the phone. Her son was starting to grow up.

Well, Alec thought surveying Aiden's room which was littered with blue prints and half drawn instructions, time to get to plan a break in.

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_**I'm really, really sorry that this took so long to finish. It's just that, juggling from my work at writing three fanfiction stories, doing homework, chores, and studying for State tests, I don't have that much time on my hands. Plus my Internet crashed down and completing my essays are really annoying right about now. **_


	12. Chapter 12

Cahill's In The Future: Secrets of a Cahill

Chapter 12: Breaking Rules Cahill Style

The room was dark, ominous even, and heady feeling of foreboding made Alec shiver involuntarily. For a branch whose claim to fame was being knife wielding, tree huggers, the Madrigal Coliseum seemed to be well… evil? No not quite. Ancient was more accurate. Ancient and harsh and judging and just well… wrong.

Alec pushed that thought away as quickly as it came. Now he was in too deep to entertain doubts. As quickly as the brush of a butterfly's wing, a thought came to him.

_Flashback Begins_

_Alec was even years old, standing at the edge of the field, as he watched his football team get ready for the semi-finals. Even then the small boy didn't understand how he ended up in such a situation. He wasn't exactly a 'team player' and while he had nothing personal against the sport, spending an entire afternoon kicking a ball around didn't exactly appeal to him. _

"_Ready mate?" Aiden walked up, grinning from ear to ear. Ah, now he remembered how he was dragged into it. Aiden had gotten this ridiculous idea in his head to play in every sport the school had to offer in one semester and bounced from field to field with an annoying about of exuberance and a reluctant Alec trailing behind. _

"_No," Alec replied, sounding bored, "Can I go the stands and read now?" The other boy appeared unfazed by his clear lack of enthusiasm, because he continued chattering._

"_Don't be such a downer Al! You might even have a lot of fun," Aiden said brightly, "With a bit of luck, we might even win!" _

"_Luck will have nothing to do with it," a smooth, amused voice interrupted, and Alec turned to see his beautiful Aunt Natalie walk up, her amber eyes fastened on the field. Then she said the words that Alec knew would be inscribed into his memory for as long as possible. _

"_Only a fool would rely on luck," Aunt Natalie smiled, "We're Cahill's. We use talent. And we play to win." _

_Their team won fifteen to nothing that day. _

_Flashback Ends_

"I'm a Cahill," Alec repeated his voice cold, "I play to win." And with that, the teen dived into the dark abyss below.

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Evelyn stood anxiously, switching from crouching down to standing up to pacing around and then back to standing. She supposed it would be best for her to calm down, but the younger Cahill sibling never did like standing still. Or waiting. Or being quiet.

Thus, the pacing began once more.

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Out of all three of the teens, it could arguably be said that Aiden had the easiest of the three tasks. With his childhood best friend possibly plummeting to his doom through one aspect of Madrigal security and his kind-of girlfriend trying to break in through the danger route that he himself was stupid enough to get talked into programming, and also nearly dying if he made so much as one wrong keystroke… well, it could definitely be agreed on that Aiden was stressed.

Biting his lower lip so hard tat the tender flesh broke, the metallic taste of copper in his life blood spilling into his mouth, Aiden's fingers flew over the keyboard with an ease only few could claim to own. Without thinking, almost of their own violation, his fingers cut through the defenses mercilessly, destroyed the firewalls, programmed in new orders… orders that might end up killing Evelyn.

He shivered as the thought came to him, making him sick inside. He had wanted to go in her place but Alec had refused, saying that he was the best tech controller in the group, the only one with even a half possible chance of getting them through. He had wanted to argue, to rage, to plead… but Alec was right. Alec, calculating, merciless, harsh Alec who hid from his own feelings and was insanely protective of the few he called friends was always right.

His fingers were about to press in the last keystroke, placing in the digital code that could possibly send the girl he loved to her doom. His heart cried out against it, but without hesitation his fingers pressed down.

He was a teen in love. He had a best friend he would die for. He was a kid, a silly, game loving, and energetic boy.

But he was a Madrigal agent first. And no matter what, he could be nothing else.

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Alec's body twisted, folding in itself to avoid the latest laser web. Just like in class, he thought mirthlessly. His lip curved into a smile, following another quick series of flips, jumps and bends, spaced only a hairsbreadth apart; a single mistake letting him fall to his doom. Well, if that wasn't a thought that made you focus that Alec didn't know what was. Each move was perfectly choreographed, after years of practice with some of the best Madrigal teachers, the branch had to offer.

Believe me; the irony of this whole situation was not lost on him.

Holding out his hand, he closed it around a metal beam, twisting his body forward until he was bale to flip over it and using the added momentum, kicking himself back from the wall in front of it. He miscalculated his next jump though, his arm finding slippery purchase among one of the pipes, and the grasping at nothing, stale air between his fingers.

The only sign of his surprise was a slight widening of jade green eyes, before Alec's body plummeted downward. Without letting himself panic, he instinctively closed within himself to cushion most of his body from the blow and, tucking his head between his legs, crashed into another slab of stone, triggering a wide blare of alarms all around him.

_RING! RING! RING! _

Dazed and with his arms and knees throbbing from the landing, Alec quickly rolled across the floor, narrowly missing a laser beam shot at his spot just a second ago. When he propped his body up on a grazed elbow though and saw the force of the laser, he winced, remembering that it wasn't just a game anymore. If he was caught in that, his torso would have been burned in two.

The alarms continue to blare, as Alec got up, groaning in pain as his injury was stretched. Dismissing the dark, inky black stain on his shirt, he quickly checked his cuts. A few were rather large but thankfully shallow; he wouldn't die of blood flow. Then he stood up and looked over the surroundings around him.

"Shit," Alec muttered out loud.

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Evelyn let out a sigh of relief as the metal elevator glided up to a smooth stop before her. The metal door was cool to the touch, its smooth, unfeeling surface a testament to the branch's merciless defense. Her stomach fluttered, bile rising to her throat, sickeningly sweet as she stepped into the metal cage.

She hated this. The harsh metal walls, the door closing her in, the emotionless, careless cruelty of the defense systems. Evelyn wanted, needed, something more vibrant, more bursting with energy. Not this stupid, lifeless machine that was carrying her down now, pale lights brightening the small, unyielding interior.

Evelyn couldn't help but jump when the alarms started blaring. Shivering, with shivers rising up her slender arms, she tried to rub her hands, hoping it didn't mean what she thought it might. Alec must have triggered an alarm… she winced as she thought of what might have happened to her twin.

"Happy memory," she thought frantically in her head, "Happy memory! Happy memory!" Desperately she tried to scrabble around the clatter of her mind, clutching the first memory she could think of.

_Flashback Begins_

_They were eleven, huddled in the back of their ballroom as a bunch of other kids- other Cahill's- milled around the room. Aiden was standing close behind them and from the corner of her eye, she could see Rebecca walking around, the common Lucian mask of haughty boredom on her pretty face. Kiernan was holding on to Alec's hand as though it was a lifesaver. _

"_Now what's with all of these long faces?" an annoyingly bright, extremely cheery voice chided, walking up to them. Evelyn looked up to see a grinning man, with freakishly colorful magenta hair put up in spikes, walk over to them. He clearly expected beaming faces to be turned toward him. All he got though was glum, and occasionally challenging and hostile, looks from the group of powerful children. _

"_You woke us up," Tania pointed out, a peeved look on her face, "At six. In the _morning_." _

"_So what's a little sunshine?" the man continued, "I'm Janus director, Clyde Silverstein! Now-" the man was interrupted as Rebecca raised her hand. With a sigh of annoyance, he gestured for her to speak. _

"_Is that like Dr. Frankenstein?" Rebecca asked sweetly, "The totally sick, completely single whacko who created a monster who ended up giving him a long, drawn out, and very painful death? I read a book about him once. Mary Shelley was a wonderful author, don't you think?" _

_It was then and there that Evelyn was absolutely positive that she must become friends with the girl. _

_The actor looked slightly thrown off by the girl before he cleared his throat and replied, "Well, uh… yes but I'm not like Dr. Frankenstein. Now on to other news! As a show of good faith, you adorable little munchkins are going to stage a play for Halloween! Won't that be fun?" _

_An icy silence greeted his words. _

"_Come on kids, let's show some enthusiasm!" he cajoled, walking up to Alec and using his fingers to lift her brother's face up, "Now aren't you a handsome little thing! I'm sure you'll break a lot of hearts when you grow up! And look at those gorgeous eyes! They're to die for!" _

_Alec looked up at him, his eyes hostile, and the man seemed to cringe a little. Evelyn, who was staring at her brother, saw his cold jade green eyes brighten considerably. She bit her lip to keep from smiling; Alec was sure to be planning a little fun. _

"_You're gay, aren't you?" Alec asked bluntly, making the man take a step back. Clyde's face reddened a bit as a couple of snickers came from the dozen or so kids in the room. _

"_Well, that's not really the question, is it?" Clyde asked nervously, "Let's begin!" As he walked over to another huddle o9f kids, Alec's disturbingly light jaded eyes followed his every movement. _

"_Don't be too cruel Al," Evelyn warned, smiling at him. _

_Alec did not answer. _

_Scene 1 Part 1_

"_Now in this scene," Clyde announced, practically bouncing on his seat, "We are going to have two vampires sweep down on the poor, unsuspecting victim below. Remember people, I want passion. I want fear. I want that Java latte I ordered from the main five minutes ago! Where is it?" _

_Evelyn looked over at her brother, who looked entirely focused on pouring a drink into the potted plant next to him. _

"_Now, you've all read you scripts, yes?" Clyde asked, not waiting for an answer before he shouted, "Okay, then. Three, two, one… ACTION!" _

_Evelyn, dressed from head to toe in black complete with a set of plastic fangs and a sweeping cape, stalked across the stage, with Alec, in a polo shirt and a pair of jeans, trailing behind. When one of the stylists had tried to make him wear a costume, he had methodically, and with a clear look of glee on his face, broken every finger in the girl's hand. After that, the other stylists had made a unanimous decision to stay away from the Cahill brat. _

_"Who-who are you?" Rebecca said, a look of complete horror appearing on her face before she stumbled and fell to the ground. It was perfectly staged expect for the rolled eyes as she leaned on the stage floor. Evelyn loomed over her, mouth open to reveal a set of glinting fangs. _

"_I AM YOUR WORST ENEMY!" Evelyn screeched, raising her hands to 'strangle' the girl. _

"_I'M Alec. Nice to meet you," her brother added, his voice suddenly becoming high pitched and as annoyingly chipper as he could make it. He held out a hand for her to shake it. _

_Really, if it wasn't for his hatred of all things dress up, Alec could make a killing in Broadway. _

"_Cut!" Clyde shouted into his bullhorn (where he got it, she had no idea), "Alec my little tyke… my little star! What's going on, baby? You're a bloodthirsty monster remember? Now let's try that scene again! Action!" _

"_Who- who are you?" Rebecca stammered out again. _

"_I AM YOUR WORST NIGHTMARE!" Evelyn shouted, wondering if she should feel guilty for beginning to enjoy this. _

"_I'm Alec. Nice to meet you," her twin said and then paused to add thoughtfully, "May I please suck your blood?" Rebecca started to snicker before Clyde interrupted. _

"_What was THAT!" Clyde demanded, "Seriously kid, you're trying to be terrifying here! What kind of undead creature of the eternal night, are ya?"_

"_One with an eight o' clock bedtime," Alec answered, his face perfectly straight. _

_Scene Two Part Seven _

_Jeremy, a dark haired Thomas boy, swept past the makeshift door, was wearing milk white robes to signify the costume of a whatever- Evelyn hadn't bothered to pay attention as it wasn't her scene. Alec who stood in front of him looked indifferent, as one of Beethoven's hauntingly beautiful melodies began to play. _

"_Alexaaander," the 'ghost' began in a supposedly lingering, otherworldly voice, "I am the Keeper of the Immortal's Book! You have died, yet your soul still roams the plains, blissfully among the living and yet so separated by the veil of the unknown! You cannot love! You cannot live! I can save you from this misery… speak only the word." _

"_Misery?" Alec asked, sounding amused now, "What are you talking about? If anything, being a ghost sounds great. No nosy neighbors, no annoying salesmen, no broccoli…" _

_From the corner of her eye, Evelyn suddenly saw Clyde groan into his hands. Jeremy became a little more flustered. _

"_But do you truly wish to live alone each day for all eternity," he cried, "Your spirit is a wanderer! You love a mortal girl and can never truly be with her! Will you hurt her so badly?" _

_Alec shrugged, unconcerned. "Eh, I'll break up with her. She wasn't really my type anyway." _

"_So you truly wish to remain a spirit," Jeremy blustered, grabbing on to whatever lines of the script he could, "Speak true and I shall give a body of flesh to you and life shall flow through your veins in thick, hot blood!" _

"_No thanks," Alec said dismissively, "Sounds boring. Besides it's much easier to sneak into the girl's showers when you can walk through walls."_

_By now, the entire room was starting to loose it, and Evelyn heard stifled giggles and quiet chuckles bursting up unexpectedly from every side of the room. Next to her, Aiden was grinning as he videotaped this for his Youtube channel. _

_From the other side of the room, Clyde muttered, "I need more coffee." _

_Scene Thirty-seven Part Four _

_Clyde Silverstein was in a real dilemma. On one hand, this smart aleck kid couldn't keep his mouth shut. The best thing would be to throw him out the window or barring that, to kick him out of the play. In fact, Clyde would love to do nothing better. _

_On the other hand though, one of his parents was co-leader of the Lucian branch, someone he would most likely not want to mess with and his other parent was co-leader of the Madrigal branch, someone he would __definitely__ not like to mess with. After all, a woman scary enough that half the Cahill family fears her, and the other half that don't just happen to be her rather powerful friends, was someone not to be bothered. _

_If he wanted inter branch unity- which he didn't particularly care for but the Madrigals (who scared him) wanted- than he would have to put the damn kid in the play. So the only thing now was to give him a small part before he could get a chance to wring the brat's scrawny neck. After all, Clyde reasoned, how badly could he mess this up? _

"_Well then," Clyde said his normally chipper voice a bit more wary as he looked at Alec's smug face, "We're going to try a new scene. Alec, you'll be playing the victim and Malcolm, the werewolf. You only have one line, 'Don't kill me' so please, __please__ don't mess this up." _

"_Yes sir," Alec grinned and got into place. Malcolm, who looked kind of funny, dressed in what seemed to be a Sequatchie suit, stood over him and attempted a growl. But he probably expected that Alec would find a way to mess this up because his heart wasn't in it. Honestly, Evelyn had seen a better show of effort from her grandmother's pet poodle. _

"_Hey dude, did you know you have your fly open?" Alec pointed out, his voice innocent. Before Malcolm could do much more than flush a dull red, Evelyn heard a dull thud on the floor. She turned her head to see that Clyde had jumped out of the seat so fast that it banged the floor. _

"_That's it!" the Janus director shouted, his voice furious, "I can't deal with this anymore! I quit!" _

"_You do?" Alec asked, and Evelyn was surprised to see that he looked genuinely disappointed, "Too bad, I was really starting to enjoy myself." Then, as though nothing had just happened, he got up, brushed the dust from his clothes and strolled out the door. _

_Looking over his shoulder, and completely oblivious to the gaping looks on the other kid's faces, he added, "Anybody want a smoothie? I think I'll go for a coconut blueberry one myself today. Evelyn?" _

"_Strawberry, mango, banana, and a few slice of pineapple," she answered immediately, "Add in some vanilla ice cream and make it extra cold. Thanks bro." _

_He nodded and walked out the door. _

_Flashback Ends_

Evelyn smiled, as the memory dwindled to a close. Smiled and then opened her eyes, amber eyes bright, muscles tensing in apprehension as the smooth metal doors wild open. She was officially in the Coliseum.

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Alec looked up when he heard the whirr of the machine, catching his sister's bright gaze as she stepped out. They scanned the room quickly, amber depths filled with anxiety, fear, and strangely excitement before they settled on him. Excitement quickly turned to concern as she saw the dark, wet stains on his clothes and hurried up to him.

"What happened to you?" Evelyn asked, her face pale, as she reached out a hand to gently pull away the sticky cloth. It came away with the sickening squelch sound, showing a large darkening bruise and shallow cuts along the left side of his body, a flash of bone sticking out against the skin. Alec's breath hissed out in pain as she gently lowered the shirt.

"A few injuries," he said, smiling at her, "I had a bad fall. Maybe a broken rib or two… I'll be fine Ev."

"You always say that," she snapped, her face surprisingly warm, "Answer me truthfully, Al. Can you handle this? If you can't, we should cancel the whole expedition and get you to the doctor immediately. You could be seriously hurt!"

"Nicholas," Alec protested before Evelyn interrupted him.

"I don't care," she said fiercely, "It doesn't matter. Not as much as you do. He can go to hell if I care but truly, are you okay?" He smiled at her, feeling a small burst of respite. So he did matter more to her than this new stranger. It was a relief to hear her say that. Maybe it was wrong, Alec conceded, but Evelyn's my twin; I'm the most important part of her li8fe, and I always should be.

"I'll live," Alec answered, "And we already got so far, we can't quit now! Besides we're not completely through yet."

"What do you mean?" Evelyn asked, puzzlement showing on her face, "I thought we passed the initial line of defense. We're in the Coliseum, aren't we?"

"We are," Alec agreed, "But we need to get to the heart to gain the information. There's a lot more ahead of us, Ev." He looked over at the wide space around them and oddly enough, despite all the circumstances, there was a challenging grin on his face. This was, after all, the very moment that all Cahill's lived for.

"Then we'll go through it together," Evelyn said, firmly, "Like we always do."

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_**I'm sorry if it's been a long time since I posted anything but the state tests just finished yesterday. As it is, your probably wondering why I had so many memories from when they were kids, it's because I've just made Evelyn and Alec from dust without showing anything of their backgrounds. Everyone just thinks of them as the children of Ian and Amy; not as Madrigal/Lucian kids in their own right. I want them to have a life of their own, without their parents fame or names, although that'll be an integral part of shaping who they are. That's why, in the future stories, I'll attempt to place in a lot more memories of their childhood. **_


	13. Chapter 13

Cahill's In The Future: Secrets of a Cahill

Chapter 12: All of Four; Heart of Five

The Coliseum was a shadowed building, dim white lights sprinkling their glow in every few intervals, leaving most of the room in darkness. Five arches seemed to lead to the end, each spaced several dozen meters and the color of their respective branches. The Lucian insignia was at the center, two snakes coiled among a sword in a background the color of blood, their eyes glittering rubies. At the end was the Madrigal insignia, a plain white M that seemed both imposing and uncaring in a background of ink black.

"There'll be protections," Alec voiced, making Evelyn turn away from the arches, "We'll have to bypass them first." It was ridiculous, but her brother didn't just seem exited at the prospect, he seemed eager.

"So what do you think they are?" Evelyn asked, following him as he shrugged and made his way toward the first arch. Her question was answered a moment later, as the second they stepped into the Tomas arch; shurikans flew from the walls narrowly missing Alec's sharp eyes

"Duck!" Alec yelled, falling to the ground and spinning away, as a rain of metal death washed over them. She quickly followed his advice, and stepped out of the arch. The minute the both of them were behind the lines, the shurikans were stopped. Chancing a possible attack, Evelyn quickly swept her foot behind the arch, bringing one of the shurikans over to her.

"It carries the mark of the yakuza," she voiced, her tone puzzled, "The Japanese secret police, members of the Tomas branch. Why are they used for Madrigal defense?"

"But of course," Alec sighed wonderingly, almost reverently touching the shurikan in her hand, "The different arches carry defenses from all four of the branches, marking the Madrigal's mastery of each talent. No Tomas, Ekaterina, Lucian, or Janus can bypass these unless they work together, a near impossible feat. They must have a safety trigger, for when you bypass the arches, making each arch a different level in defense. Probably created by the defects from the Tomas branch… only a Madrigal would be able to pass. It is brilliant, no?"

"No," she deadpanned, "I'll show more appreciation for the design after I'm sure they will not kill me. Honestly Alec, you possess an Ekat's love of engineering, you are obsessed." The exasperated but fond tone in her voice cut out any bite form the words.

"Thank you," Alec replied, looking up from the shurikan with a smile, "It almost seems like a game really. Well, one where you can die but it is fascinating. If I was not busy trying to break into the Madrigal files, I would beg mum to let me see the architectural design for this room. It's pure genius Evelyn, every piece is fitted to work exactly with the other like clockwork. The man who designed this must have been a mastermind!"

"And a fanatic like you, I'm sure," Evelyn said dryly, before noticing that her finger still bled slightly. She placed it in her mouth, the dark copper taste ringing against her tongue as her brother continued to examine the arch with interest, carefully staying away from the edge.

"The shurikan will definitely be the first defense," Alec noted absently, "Probably followed by other classic Tomas defense. Feel like dodging flaming spears today, Ev?"

"Flaming spears?" Evelyn felt herself perk up, "Like the ones we used in Hawaii?"

"The same I think," Alec laughed, seeing my enthusiasm, "There might be rabid dogs involved in the defense too. The Tomas are rather eerily fond of that one."

"It reminds them of their kids I think," She shrugged, "Remember the Holt's pit dog, Arnold?"

"I remember when you filled Eisenhower's pockets with sausage and set the beast loose on him," Alec offered, smiling at her, "Then I believe you decided to call Animal Control to complain about rabid dogs."

"Eh, it didn't hurt anyone," she answered and then reconsidered, "Well maybe except for Eisenhower. I suppose getting twenty-three stitches on your bum would hurt somewhat."

Alec shook his head and said, "How did you end up being a girl again?"

"Now Alec," she patronized, "Must we really go that road again. Now when two people love each other, very, very much like our parents and then forget to use birth control…"

"That's not what I meant!" Alec yelped, his face reddening, "Aren't girls supposed to be sugar and spice and all that?"

"Try telling that to Rebecca," Evelyn snickered, "She'd strangle you with an anaconda before she'd wear a dress. Then again, maybe she wouldn't do it to _you__._ She was really appreciative of seeing you swim Al, especially when you got _out_ of the water… I wonder how much money I'd make if I took pictures of you showering and then sold them at school."

"What are you talking about?" Alec asked, looking bemused. Evelyn just smirked at him.

"Nothing," she said airily, "Although when I have the girls over Al, please remember to lock the door before you shower." Her brother looked freaked out but thankfully didn't ask further.

"So the defenses should be basic, in terms of scientific reasons," Alec continued, "The Tomas always valued brute strength and physical endurance over intelligence and their traps would be simple but ingenious in their difficulty-"

"Are we done with the textbook lesson?" Evelyn interrupted, "You're almost as bad as our Cahill history teacher. So are we going to go in or what?" Alec shot her an irritated look, saying that he didn't appreciate the comment and replied.

"Now's just a good a time as any, I suppose," he admitted, grudgingly, and then shot her a bright grin, completely unexpected on his cold features, "Follow me if you can!"

With that Alec flipped himself into the center of the arch, activating the safety trigger, and began dodging shurikans left and right as he ran across the arch, head lowered to create a smaller target. With another small back flip, he grabbed one of the shurikans in midair, its sharp edge creating a shallow crimson cut on his palm, before he threw it into one of the machines; the shurikans seemed to be coming from. His aim must have been good because even from fifty yards away, with sharp edged metal blades flying at him; Alec was able to effectively disable it.

Evelyn rolled her eyes and followed him, spinning a cartwheel into the air, just like she did in gymnastics before falling gently on the ground and doing it again. The shurikan flied past her face, its metal border reflecting the feverish excitement in her amber eyes before it slipped away, yet another forgotten part of Cahill history. She spring jumped into the air, jamming her heel into one of the machines for balance; as she twisted herself toward the floor, reaching down to grab one of the fallen weapons for later.

"Done collecting souvenirs?" Alec called out from the center of the arch, three broken machines beside him and countless shurikans littered on the floor, "All five of the machines are disabled. The next part's coming up now. Get ready for the dogs!"

Evelyn scowled at him just as, exactly like Alec predicted it, dogs began to bark from either side of them. She barely but back a curse as two slobbering Dobermans, with _very _sharp teeth, appeared from small doors that suddenly slipped open inside of the arch itself. Now this may not have been all that important then, but really, Evelyn was very much a cat-lover.

"Here boys," Alec called out, recklessly hanging upside down on the arch's center, "Wanna play?" The dogs seemed to snarl in response, and completely forgetting Evelyn, they started barking and jumping up below the arch, hopelessly trying to grab Alec.

Evelyn suddenly had an urge to tell them not to bother. Nobody caught her brother unless he wanted to get caught. "_Except, of course, that stranger"_, her mind reminded her, "_He ensnared Alec's interest in the very beginning." _

That thought was ripped from her thoughts as a piercingly loud and extremely piercing whistle rang out in the cavern. She yelped and placed her hands over her ears, as the cavern captured that sound and magnified it ten fold, echoing the shrill whistle all over the huge room.

She heard dogs whimpering from beside her, and turned to see that the two Dobermans were bending toward the ground, paws over their ears to keep out Alec's high-pitched noise. She winced in genuine sympathy. If it was bad for her, imagine how it would feel to a creature with ears ten times as more sensitive.

It was around then that the whistling stopped and the Dobermans, finally free from the noise, ran away as fast as they could, their loud yelps following behind them. Evelyn tried to call out a warning, to follow the dogs and stop them, but a strong hand circled itself around her palm and she found herself unable to move, only to watch in horror as the dogs ran straight into the trap.

It was as Alec predicted flaming spears that flew out of the cavernous walls and engulfed the beasts, merciless to their high-keening shrieks of pain. The flames covered them, before burning itself out, leaving two sacks of charred flesh behind. Evelyn made a sound- half choke half gasp- and sagged against her brother's arm as bile rose in her throat at the sight.

"I must say," her brother remarked calmly, and Evelyn half turned to see that he was easily holding her up as he stared at the dogs, "That was not very pleasant."

"Not very pleasant?" Evelyn repeated, her voice hollow before anger surged through her, "How could you say that! They _died _Alec, they just died. And it's our fault…. If we hadn't…"

"If we hadn't what, Evelyn?" Alec asked, his voice cold, "Sacrificed ourselves to save them? We would never have done that. They're animals, their lives don't mean anything. Honestly, they would have been happy to kill us."

"How could you be so cruel?" Evelyn whispered, falling to the floor, not caring where they were, "No one deserves that death Alec, _no one_. We drove them there, we made them run."

"No," he answered, his voice surprisingly gentle, "I did that; you were never to blame. I know this sight upset you Evelyn but it's our lives or theirs, you must remember that. And I'm not going to let you die. If the fire hadn't killed them, I would have. They died a painless death."

"We wouldn't have had to kill them," she said, but even to herself, she sounded vacant, "We could have left them here, or taken them with us…" Her brother shook his head.

"Leave them here to starve?" he asked, "Take them with us and endangered our own life as well as theirs? No, we wouldn't have done it. I would never have allowed it."

"Then you're a heartless bastard," she answered, blinking back tears, "You're just like all the other Cahill's. Selfish and cruel and always thinking about the big picture."

"Then I'm like our parents," he answered, his voice harsh, despite the hurt on his face as he suddenly let her go, "I'm like Uncle Dan and Aunt Natalie and Grandpa Fiske. I'm a Cahill. Do you really think I would live a normal, everyday life or kill myself to save a pair of animals? I wouldn't and neither would you. Cahill's have a responsibility and they've been answering that call for years. They're extraordinary and they've paid for that price in blood and pain and sorrow and death. But if it means anything to you, which I doubt it does, I would die for someone… you."

Evelyn was speechless, wishing to go and apologize but too ashamed to life her head. She sat there, anger pouring out of her and only sorrow and grief left behind.

"The dogs have taken care of the last Tomas trap for us," he said, his voice crisp and polite, as though talking to a stranger. Evelyn suddenly wanted to cry. "We need to bypass Ekaterina next. You need to come along; mum and dad won't like it if I leave you here to get hurt."

_Great, so I'm one of your responsibilities now_, Evelyn thought bitterly, as she stood up. Alec was already walking away from her and toward the Ekaterina arch.

"Alec," she whispered to no one in particular, knowing he wouldn't hear her from that far away, "I don't think I want to be a Cahill if all it leads to is sadness."

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The first two Ekaterina traps were bypassed easily, a computerized robot, and heat-seeking, miniature ice missiles. The third one however, proved a bit more difficult.

"So what's the defense?" Evelyn asked aloud, feeling like an idiot as she stood in the sector for nothing, "What do we fight?"

Alec looked equally puzzled as he looked over the small incisors that appeared on the wall as soon as they stepped into the arch, "I don't know. These don't seem to be doing anything really."

"Maybe the Ekat branch just has two defenses," Evelyn offered from the side.

Alec frowned, "But that wouldn't make any sense. Especially as Madrigals are all about branch equality and all… there should be at least three traps for each branch."

"So what's the third trap?" Evelyn asked, "Are we going to get bored to death?"

"Don't be stupid," Alec answered, "If that were the case, we'd be listening a record playing of Uncle Alistair's stories. _The kids here are this and that_ _and when I was a boy, etc. etc." _

Evelyn was about to giggle but caught herself right on time and suddenly noticed an odd fragrance in the air, "Alec does that look like… pollen to you?"

"Pollen?" Alec looked bemused, "It can't be, we're hundreds of miles underground but…" Suddenly his eyes widened in horror and he grabbed Evelyn, pinning the girl to his chest as he cover her mouth.

"It's a trigger," he whispered, "It'll activate the endorphins in your brain and make you mentally experience your worst fears! Don't breathe!"

"Too late," Evelyn gasped, swaying on her feet, "It was out here for so long. I-"

"You have to fight it," Alec said hurriedly, shaking her as he brought his shirt up to cover his mouth. As Evelyn slipped into unconsciousness, she distantly heard Alec shouting, "Remember, it's not real! You… to… fight… Ev!"

_Evelyn's Mindscape_

_It was dark; darkness all around that pressed into her. She was alone, so, so alone. There was no color, no brightness; no life… where was her family? Panic rose up in her as she looked around, but she couldn't find them. Not Alec or mum or dad or Aiden… _

_She rose on the floor, finding to horror that she encountered smooth black stone on either side. She was cramped, there was no room! Claustrophobic, she remembered wildly, she was claustrophobic. She opened her mouth, tried to scream, tried to beat her hands against the smooth, cold stone and nothing came. She was pressed in by silence, silence that was louder than any noise she could have made. _

_It engulfed her, this reckless panic, this terror at being trapped here. She beat her hands even harder against the cage, wait her hands! She couldn't see her hands! She was blind, her world bled of color… she was alone. Where was Alec? She needed Alec! She needed her brother… _

_Wait, Alec, he said something. What did he say? Her mind, her mind hurt, it was all so fuzzy. No, her mind it had something to do with her mind. What did he say? He was angry at her… hurt; it made a sick taste run through her mouth. But afterward, he protected her, just like he always did, just like he always would. _

_What did Alec say?_

_It was in her mind… wait; it was all in her mind! Everything was a hallucination, some Ekat meddling with her brain. She had to fight it. But how do you fight your own mind? _

To Be Continued…


	14. Chapter 14

Cahill's In The Future: Secrets of a Cahill

Chapter 14: A Cahill's Fall From Grace

_But the darkness was cold… suffocating. Nothing could be seen but her slim body teetered anyway, as though at the edge of a bottomless crevice. Irrational. She knew the fear was irrational. In her mind. She told herself that but fear rose up anyway… a black tide overcoming her. She flailed wildly, but her movements were sluggish… slow, icy water dragging her down. Cold water filling her lungs, black water pressing down; she couldn't breathe!_

_No. No, she was dreaming. She opened her mouth, breathed in, and the water drained away, leaving her stranded again on a cliff of pure darkness. Icy shivers racked her body, brittle heaves that left her terribly weak. The darkness was back but it was… different. Evelyn reached out a trembling hand, felt velvet steel- she recoiled. This darkness? It was Alec. _

_Cold, cruel, composed Alec. His anger. His mistrust. His ruthless nature. It settled over her like a smothering veil. But it wasn't supposed to be like that! Her brother- her twin- he had never done this to her! He would never hurt her. _

"_But that doesn't mean that Alec isn't cruel," a mocking voice whispered in the deepest recesses of her mind, "He's kind to his sister but the rest of the world doesn't see mercy. They fear him. And you do too. That's why you're seeing him now, isn't it?"_

_She shook her head, stumbling backwards. Alec wasn't that kind of person. She knew that!_

"_But did you?" the voice asked, "You were always so happy to trail behind him, overlooking his faults. Pretending not to notice when people flinch, stutter, feel fear…"_

_It's right, she realized with dread. She was her brother's shadow and over time, she'd come to fear that. It horrified her to think that her brother was anything less than perfect. But he wasn't. He was just a powerful kid of two Cahill's. _

_Her brother had inherited the best of their parents as well as the worst. He had his mother's intellect and loyalty and fierce protective instinct but he also inherited her anger and fear and lashed out at others. His inheritance from his father gave him his charisma and strong will and cunning nature but he was also cold and judgmental and power-hungry. _

_Alec was a Cahill. She had forgotten that. But then… she was a Cahill too. _

_And a Cahill always walked alone. _

_So she let go. She let go and tumbled into the abyss… falling forever and ever and ever…_

End of Evelyn's Mindscape

"Evelyn! Evelyn!" a choked voice was calling her, desperately repeating her name over and over, "Evelyn! Evelyn! Evelyn, please! Please wake up!" The voice was frantic and loud. She frowned; it was too loud. She didn't like it. '

She tried to open her eyes to tell the voice to go away but it was like her eyes had been glued shut. With difficulty, she managed to pry them open, only to look up to a pair of crazed icy jade eyes.

Whatever Alec's faults, no one could deny that he cared about her.

"Evelyn," he repeated, shocked before the girl suddenly found herself in a crushing hug, "Oh, thank god, you're alright. I thought- I thought -for Madeline's sake, don't ever do that again! I thought I'd lost you!"

"Mphm," said girl answered. As Alec moved back to let her speak, she grinned, "Don't be stupid Al. As if a bit of plant dust could kill _me_."

"Pollen," Alec corrected, never too worried to tell her the proper meaning. Evelyn rolled her eyes. Great, even at the verge of her hypothetical deathbed, Alec had to be a know-it-all.

And she_missed_this brat?

"But are you really okay?" Alec asked, his face still concerned.

"Why wouldn't I be?" she said flippantly. She knew what he really wanted to ask- they were too close to get around that- but damn it if she'll even consider telling him her fears. He frowned but didn't say anything. Strangely Evelyn found herself disappointed, didn't her brother care _at__all?_

She pushed the thought out of her head as he helped her up and they went on to the next challenges. The Janus ones were actually pretty amusing (although in retrospect, the fact that she found exploding toxic paint bombs and banshee wailing 'funny', should that disturb her?) They were bypassed pretty easily though, and Alec seemed to take a particular vivacious glee in systematically crushing the robotic Mozart and Picassos.

If the Janus ones were amusing though, then the Lucian's were downright hysterical. First there was a descent into a snake pit (always a classic), followed by a series of hidden traps, nets, and gauges that were rather easy to destroy. The last defense was… surprising to say the least.

There were seven vials full of strange liquids, a piece of paper with a scribbled riddle, and an electrically powered curtain of "flames." According to the directions they had to find the diluted venom and feed it to the scanner, among the many other vicious poisons in the row, if they were to survive.

"…I always knew you got your Harry Potter obsession from somewhere Al," Evelyn finally said, breaking the silence. A quick look at her brother show a pink flush rising in his cheeks; one that he futilely tried to hide.

"…Shut up," Alec said, lacking a better reply, "Just hand me the stupid riddle."

She smirked at him, "Oh whatever you say, great Chosen One." Her brother just snatched the paper from her hand, not bothering to reply. It was a little known fact that both Ian Kabra and his son were infatuated with the Harry Potter series. When they were younger, Alec had even claimed that he would be going to Hogwarts when he turned eleven.

It took a few minutes to decipher the riddle, as it was understandably more difficult than the Boy-Who-Lived's. Whoever said Snape was the only one who gave a difficult riddle had never met a Lucian with a grasp of seven languages- two of which were technically "dead".

And Evelyn had said that learning Latin was useless.

Soon they found themselves in front of the Madrigal trap, which was… a mirror? It was a completely ordinary, if expensive, antique mirror. The frame was made of burnished wood, the glass crystal clear, and it was devoid of any designs. There were no poison polished into the wood, the mirror didn't shoot lasers, and there wasn't even a splinter in sight!

"So how does this kill us?" Evelyn finally asked, after her brother had examined the mirror to death. Alec looked up, an uncharacteristically puzzled look in his eyes.

"I don't think it's supposed to kill us," Alec finally said, surprised, "This is the Madrigal chamber so I guess now that we bypassed all the other traps…"

"That's it," Evelyn said, incredulous, "No painful death? No torture? No traps?" When her brother shook her head, she groaned, "But that's so boring!"

Alec smirked at her. "Typical Cahill," he teased, "I hope Aidan can be exiting enough for your tastes then. Poor guy's got his work cut out for him."

With that, the older Cahill twin turned back to the mirror, leaving his little sister blustering behind. He quickly looked over the mirror before letting his eyes fall down to the floor. A dark mark etched into the wood, hardly noticeable, quickly caught his eye and Alec crouched down to get a closer look.

"They looked like such a happy family," he murmured, lifting up the wood to reveal a small portrait below. His movement caught Evelyn's interest.

"What's that?" Evelyn perked up. In answer, Alec gestured to the painting and she crouched down too, to look at the portrait. She gasped; it was the original family.

Alec was right; they did look happy. A man with crazy gray hair and serious yet kind face stood at the center of the portrait, a beautiful women with laughing eyes standing beside him. Four children surrounded the portrait; a burly young man with his mother's eyes was to her left. Next to the young man, was a girl with brown curls and intelligent eyes. Another young man, this time, tall and slender with raven hair and a reluctant smile stood across from them, with a small, beaming, red-haired girl beside him.

"How could it turn out the way it did?" Evelyn asked quietly, slender fingers slipping out to trace the lining of the portrait. How could such a happy family hate so each other so much? She could see her profile imitated in Luke Cahill… her father's ancestor; her grin shown again in the devil-may-care Thomas, and her hair was so much like young Jane's. And her brother's eyes were painted within Katherine and his smile in Luke.

But it was a family doomed to sadness and pain in the throes of ambition. They were Cahill's.

Alec said nothing but she could feel his indifference and it made her emotions flare up. How could he be so emotionless? This was how it should have been! They should have been born into a happy family not a power-hungry mess the Cahill's had become!

Just as easily it went cold again though; Alec was a Cahill in every truest sense of the world. It was the one thing always separating them. She fought against this life and he embraced it. She struggled with her fate while he was crafted for his destiny.

Her finger slipped and she gasped as it skimmed over the paint, and pressed into a small indention there. Dimly she felt her brother yank her back, but she just watched, mesmerized as the mirror darkened to an opaque black and disappeared under an opening in the wall. The wall seemed cave in then until a silver screen was left in its place.

They stood, motionless as the screen whirred as came to life, beeping a pale, silver glow. At the back of his mind, Alec had a chance to be impressed. He didn't see a wire in sight to he suspected that it must have been satellite controlled. And to get such a signal, totally undisrupted, and private in such a place, without interfering with the energy rays was a rather impressive feat.

He wondered if there were optic fibers involved.

"Hey Einstein," Evelyn hissed and jabbed a elbow to his gut, "Stop daydreaming in your nerd-world. We have to get the information!"

"Alright, alright," Alec said, placating, as he moved forward to assess the screen. A wry smile tugged at his lips before he commanded, "Screen files activate. Distribute energy level; access Madrigal documents. Code word: Nicholas Verlac. Search engine cross-reference within forty years. Full listing."

"Data found," a robot voice whirred, as the screen suddenly filled itself with a silvery, flowing script, "View files?"

Alec grinned at the screen, clearly delighted, while Evelyn chose not to roll her eyes. The only person who could get even more excitement out of a machine would have been Aiden.

"Yes," Alec beamed as the listings glowed. He raised a hand and pressed a long, tapered finger on one, which immediately opened. Evelyn watched, a curious mixture of anxiety and excitement twisting her stomach. It was here. They finally got it.

They had accomplished the impossible.

Alec looked at her, hesitating, as the file downloaded. The question in his eyes was clear. If they saw this, there would be no going back. It was a dangerous choice… she nodded.

Alec pressed a single finger and the files opened.

Nicholas Verlac: Madrigal Agent

_**Birth: Vesper **_

_**Born: 1990  
**_

_**Death: N/A**_

_**Current Status: Unknown location; tried for betrayal of Madrigal branch to Vespers. Further case: disclosed. Cleared of all charges. All possessions and accounts in hiatus. Untraced account (s): 2. Status? Cannot be found. **_

"What's a Vesper?" Evelyn finally said, a mixture of disappointment and curiosity lacing her tone. "And seriously, is that it?"

"There's one more," Alec frowned, as he closed the file, "Let's hope that one's longer. This one raised even more questions than it answered."

"It wouldn't be worth it to come down here if all we get to learn is that he's a Madrigal," Evelyn sighed, "And it's not like he didn't tell us already that he knew mum and dad as a kid."

"Maybe we'll get more here then," Alec said calmly, even as his heart raced. His mind didn't seem to know what result it wanted: did he want there to be more or for it to all just disappear?

July 21, 2006

_**If anyone is reading this than everything I'd feared has come to pass. My name is Nicholas Verlac, a born member of the Madrigal branch in the Cahill family. My father, however, was a Vesper, albeit a cleverly disguised one. The members of these two powerful families' have been fighting for generations, to take control of a power in which few knew its existence. **_

_**Long before the family split into the four (and secretly five) branches, there was a fight between Damien Vesper and Gideon Cahill that resulted in Gideon's near death. All members of the family had assisted in stealing and disguising a true power source from Damien, one that far exceeds our formula for the plague. This power is inhuman, of the gods, and has been branded through our generations since. **_

_**It is poison but one that cannot be lived without, and only a few are truly gifted, or perhaps cursed, as the wielders of the Shadow Flame. Only one line has produced it throughout the generations and the family lives in a half-world that lays the result of their power. Katherine had contained it, Thomas had transported it, Jane had disguised it, and Luke had hid it. It was Madeline however that was entrusted with its protection and she, alone, suffered the brunt of its flames. **_

_**It follows now as our task to protect this from the Vespers- at all costs. Every death of a Cahill and every blood fallen at a Cahill's hands had been the product of such a beautiful, such a terrible gift. We can scarcely comprehend its power, we cannot lose it, and we fear to live by it. No matter the horrors though, the Vespers must not get their hands on what has been hidden. **_

_**I have to betray my branch today in an attempt to keep the Flame still passing through the ranks of the Cahill's. If the true line dies, we shall all fall at the Vesper's hand. Grace is loosing the threads of the time and Amy cannot control what she has never embraced. Beware Cahill's, if Madeline's line dies, all shall pay the price. **_

Evelyn read, numb, as her eyes flitted over the words. Only one line, lingered in her mind, an echo of her own fear in the voice of this stranger.__Every death of a Cahill and every blood fallen at a Cahill's hands…

"Evelyn, we have to go!" Alec interrupted, hastily as the red alarms began to blare. She looked up at him, face expressionless, as he slipped a flash drive into the screen's opening and quickly downloaded the file. She was numb, numb to it all he grabbed her arm and dragged her toward the elevator, intent on his goal. She didn't speak a word as they left the chamber and into their home library. She didn't even say anything as Alec, grinning, sent a short message to Aiden about the mission being a success.

"Evelyn, can you believe this!" Alec exclaimed, thrilled as he looked at his sister, expecting her to agree, "To think, a formula even more powerful than that of the plague's cure! To give someone the power of the gods! If someone could harness it, imagine the possibilities…"

It was then that Evelyn finally reacted, and she looked up to interrupt her brother. What she just said were the words, her twin had never thought would fall from her lips.

"Alec? I don't want to be a Cahill anymore."

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_**Right… so I seem to be in a writer's block phase when it comes to this story. I have no idea why, except for possibly being my difficulty in relating to the plot. Still… it's almost done and I'll probably finish it in one or two more chapters so maybe I should get this story over and done with. I still definitely want to use Alec and Evelyn and the Cahill family a bit more though so… possibly a short mini-story of drabbles about their basic life? Kind of like Cahill 101, only in story mode. Any ideas? **_


	15. Chapter 15

Cahill's In The Future: Secrets of a Cahill

Chapter 15: The Next Nick?

"What did you just stay?" Alec asked, not quite comprehending what his wears had just heard. Surely his little sister was kidding?

Evelyn took in a deep breath, looking for all the world as though she was just about to do something incredibly unpleasant and repeated, "I don't want to be a Cahill anymore."

Alec stared at the amber eyed teen, not noticing the small, pleading voice his sister spoke with, or the fear lurking in her darkened eyes. This solemn creature could not have been Evelyn- his laughing, cheerful, impulsive sister- anymore than he could. What was she saying?

"I don't understand," Alec said slowly, trying to get his numb brain to function properly, "Can you explain?" At this, Evelyn exploded.

"Explain _what_ Alec?" was the near hysterical reply. It was a voice full of frustration and desperation and anger, "Explain that we're slowly dying because of all this? That _I_ am slowly dying? This isn't even a family! It's a charade for a pack of power-hungry mongrels masquerading as something wonderful when really, their own greed is killing them!"

Her voice tapered off to a sob and her wet eyes beseeched him to understand, "Didn't you see them Alec? They were so happy, so _alive_. They were a family. Not this. Not whatever this pretends to be. We all go on as though we are some big happy clan when we had been secretly poisoning each other for centuries! Do you think it can all just be forgotten? That everyone sill suddenly, magically forget all the deaths everyone else had caused? _That they themselves had caused_?"

Alec stared at her in horror, only moving forward by pure instinct when Evelyn's legs buckled and she fell into his arms. "It's just not _fair_ Alec," she sobbed into his shirt, body racking with pain even as he looked down at her hopeless.

What was he supposed to say? That, of course, this wasn't fair? That life wasn't fair; especially not for Cahill's? That this was really all worth it because it was the price they had to pay for generations of power?

"We never got to meet Mum's parents," Evelyn mumbled, her voice small, "Dad's parents had killed them when Mum and Uncle Dan were young. Do you think Mum forgot that? She loves Dad but she never really forgot. I _saw_ her Alec. When I was six, I saw her flinch once when he picked me up. Did she think he would kill his own daughter? What else could she think?"

"No," Alec whispered, voice shaking, "Stop it Evelyn! Stop it! You're lying!" He pushed her away from him and she stumbled backward, her tears still falling freely.

Evelyn persisted, "What if that happens to us? What if we lose Mum and Dad one day? What if we're all alone in this world? Maybe it'll be better if we were."

"God Evelyn," Alec shook his head, angry, "How could you say that? Don't you love them at all? Or Uncle Dan and Aunt Natalie? Or how about Kieran and Aiden? Are you going to let history repeat itself Ev? Are you going to be the next Nicholas Verlac?"

Her face fell even as she said slowly, "I'm a Cahill, aren't I?"

"No, you're not," Alec shouted, "If you were then you'd know how this family really works! We may not be the kindest or even the happiest, but we're loyal to the tones we love! We're strong, we're talented, we're intelligent, we're ambitious yes… but most of all we _sacrifice_."

Evelyn's face looked defiant even as Alec stepped closer, pressing his point. "Do you think you're the only one who felt this way? There are so many Cahill's- past and present- who didn't like what they were born with in life. Nevertheless, _they _were loyal; _they_ were brave. They gave up their personal happiness to help the causes they believed in."

"They killed their own family," Evelyn snapped at him.

"No family is perfect Ev," Alec's smile was bitter, "And ours hardly will be with all the power we have. Mum and Uncle Dan used to think Grace had betrayed them and that their parents were evil. However, in the end, they still had faith in their family. We're going through the same thing now. But we're Cahill's; we'll see the truth soon."

"You're a Cahill Alec," she shook her head sadly, "And I guess I always knew I could never convince you to go away from the family you love so much, even if it's killing you."

"What are you saying?" her brother's jade green eyes narrowed in distrust.

"I'm no Cahill Al, and I don't want to be," she said simply, "I've been trying for so long but it never came to me the way it came to you. I just want to stop it all. I want to leave."

"So you're going to leave your family for this?" Alec's voice was incredulous, "You don't have to be part of all this if you don't want to Evelyn, but such a drastic measure?"

"But this family is so deep in the Cahill world," she laughed, her voice high and mocking, "Do you really think I'll be able to stay away if I live here? One day- maybe next week, or next month, or even next year- I'll step into this world again at your urging and I'll never leave."

"Then I'll get out too," Alec said hastily, too worried by the idea of his sister leaving to understand the consequences of what he was saying, "_I'll_ leave the Cahill world but you can't leave home. Mum and Dad will never let you Evelyn."

"I could never let you cut away such an important part of your life Al," she smiled ruefully, "You know, Rebecca once said that there was something about you that made other people give up all their desires to accommodate yours. She says that much of whatever we do is calculated to gain your approval. I laughed at that time but I can see what she means."

"That makes no sense," Alec snapped, "You can't leave!"

"Yes, I can," she said calmly, "And Mum and Dad will let me. They've seen enough of the world to know it'll be for the best."

"Well I won't," Alec replied firmly, crossing his arms, "You're not allowed to leave."

At that, Evelyn unexpectedly grinned, "You're so bossy Al. I'm going to miss you. Out of everyone, I'm going to miss my annoying, know-it-all, selfish, bossy big brother the most. You know, I really need to get more friends."

She waited for his sharp retort on her choice of friends.

"Will you at least wait until I can get Mum and Dad to come and convince you otherwise," Alec asked instead, green-hued eyes pleading.

"I don't suppose you're going to give me a choice," Evelyn sighed.

A small smile came into Alec's face as he shook his head. He leaned forward and drew her into a quick hug before reluctantly letting her go. "Not a chance."

Then Evelyn went off to find a maid to pack her clothes as Alec sat down in one of the nearby chairs with a rather distressed look on his face. Deciding that he couldn't bear to hear either of his parent's voices right now, he sent a quick message to Greece where they were both attending the Cahill World Leader Conference. Then he just went up to his room and allowed himself to take a pill that would make him fall into a deep, dreamless sleep. For once, Alec didn't want to lose himself in his thoughts.

The next morning found a groggy Alec waking up with a splitting headache. Now he remembered why he avoided those pills. For some reason the drugs never worked on his properly and ended up giving him a terrible nuisance.

He asked his mum about it once but all she did was smile at him sympathetically before suggesting that he avoid them. She claimed not to know why but it was rather obvious, by her worried eyes and the way she threw out his stash afterward that she did. Great, even another lie in the web of secrets that was the Cahill family.

Only his parents would go to the trouble of hiding medicinal properties from him.

With a sigh, he quickly changed and walked downstairs, seeing Evelyn sitting at their cheerful kitchen table, a deeply distressed look on her face.

"Oh hey," she smiled wanly as Alec raised an eyebrow at her in question. She shrugged and paused, "Mum and Dad are here." Ah, so that's why she looked so nervous.

'That was quick," was his response. Again, she shrugged in reply.

"They took the direct plane here at night," was her response, her amber eyes watching his every move with suspicion, "Apparently the text message they received worried them."

Alec didn't let his face show a glimmer of the satisfaction he felt inside. "And you're waiting for me before you go to face them?" It wasn't a question.

"Don't be such a Janus about it," she grumbled, making him bight back a smile, as she stood up and dragged him outside.

"Aren't they waiting at the parlor?" Alec asked, as she made her way toward one of the secluded sun houses at the edge of the property. "And what about breakfast?"

She waved her hand dismissively, "I ate enough for both of us."

Alec's reply was all but grateful, "I'm sure my stomach will thank you for that."

She grinned over at him, "Look on the bright side, Al, whenever you have one of those not-so-secret video talks with Ethan, you can show him how slim you've gotten."

"I don't have video talks with Ethan," Alec immediately protested.

"Sure you don't," she rolled her eyes, "That's why we get such a huge bill from the electric company that says a bunch of our minutes are being used up in New York."

Alec was saved a reply as they walked into the sunroom and suddenly halted in their steps. The beautiful, mahogany furniture was in ruins, stuffing thrown everywhere from the expensive hand-stitched pillows. Fabric littered the floor alongside glass shards from paintings that seemed to have been thrown on the ground. A window at the corner had cracked glass, almost like filaments from a spider web over it, an eerie beauty in the wanton destruction.

"Oh my god," Evelyn's voice sounded horrified, "What happened here?"

Alec ignored her, mind spinning with possibilities as he stepped over the glass shards and made his way over to the center of the destruction. Amidst a pile of rubble and wood splinters, his deep eyes caught the slightest edge of a glimmering piece of jewelry. As he lifted it out, his hands skipped over the jade pendant of a dragon at the center of the beautiful piece. He stared at it for a minute before his eyes gazed up into Evelyn's own horrified stare. They both knew what had happened but Alec let his mouth slip open and the words come out anyway.

"They've been kidnapped."

_**End of Secrets of a Cahill**_

_**To Be Continued**_

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_**So this is the long awaited conclusion to the Cahill's In The Future: Secrets of a Cahill series! Alec and Evelyn are learning more and more about their family's tragic past even as they begin to distrust what they've considered all their lives to be their destiny. Now with Amy and Ian kidnapped, they'll have to pick between an unparalleled legacy or a chance at a normal life without the drama and death of a Cahill world. They're unraveling at the seams, beginning to question every aspect of their lives, and may be forced to rely on the trust of a stranger to get back the people they love. **_

_**I won't be starting on the next story right away; I definitely need some R & R time away from the craziness that is this story. I don't want to give up the Cahill's completely just yet though so I'll be starting a new mini-story about their lives before Nick. It'll be multi-chaptered and family-centered without the intensity of the Cahill past. I want to show more of the relationships between the Cahill family members and hopefully make them seem more human. It's up right now so I hope everyone tries to read it. Thanks! **_


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